


Major Malfunction

by catchip2



Series: American Heroes [2]
Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Angst, Bullying, Friendship, Homophobia, Homophobic Language, Internalized Homophobia, M/M, Period-Typical Homophobia, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Siblings, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, Will Byers Has Powers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-03
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-14 05:13:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 23,140
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29165529
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/catchip2/pseuds/catchip2
Summary: After moving away with his family and El, Will struggles to maintain his friendships with Mike and the rest of the Party while trying to navigate his new life and growing powers.
Relationships: Jonathan Byers & Will Byers, Joyce Byers & Will Byers, Will Byers & Dustin Henderson & Lucas Sinclair & Mike Wheeler, Will Byers & Eleven | Jane & Dustin Henderson & Maxine Mayfield & Lucas Sinclair & Mike Wheeler, Will Byers & Eleven | Jane Hopper, Will Byers & Maxine "Max" Mayfield, Will Byers & Mike Wheeler, Will Byers/Mike Wheeler
Series: American Heroes [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2117145
Comments: 36
Kudos: 52





	1. Everyone Has Secrets

**Author's Note:**

> *this work contains homophobic slurs which I do not condone the use of  
> playlist to listen to on spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37oxKtWF13BHTnMQ8pxcdT  
> on youtube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5MyENnk58FZ72ycI3bc5Vu9FrlkdBgy-

The city streets are bustling with people in the spring of nineteen eighty-six, shouts and the honking of car horns filling the air. It's March twentieth, two days away from spring break, and from around the corner of a building, Will Byers and El Hopper come tearing down the sidewalk, shoes slamming against the pavement. Behind them, two boys and a girl – all of them double the size of Will and El despite all being the same age – shout and scream, waving their fists as they chase after them.

One of the boys, wearing a black Members Only jacket and khakis, thrusts his arms forward and slams Will to the pavement. The skin of Will's forearms scratch against the cement, leaving streaks of blood on the ground. And oh, does it burn.

Before he can move, the boy grabs him by the shirt collar and yanks him to his feet. “Where do you think you're going, faggot?”

Choking from the fabric tightening against his throat, Will grasps at the boy's hands whilst keeping his eyes on the ground, trying to suppress the anger boiling up inside him. Beside them, El rushes forward and yanks the boy's arm. “Leave us alone.”

The girl shoots El a glare, stepping between her and the boy strangling Will. “Shut up, lesbo.”

“What do you want?” Will hisses, struggling in the boy's grasp. His mind blurs and black dots cloud his vision, but he tries to keep calm.

“What do we want?” the boy sneers. “We want you to get the hell out of our city, you freaks.” He hurls Will backwards like a cannon. Will slams onto the concrete, his elbows slicing open and sending a rush of pain through his body like a dozen shards of glass splitting his skin apart. Wincing, he attempts to push himself to his knees, but the boy surges forward and slams his foot in Will's stomach. _Whoosh!_ The air shoots out of his lungs and leaves him choking in shallow breaths.

“Stop it!” El shoves the boy to the side, but the girl grabs her by the hair and heaves her onto the ground beside Will. He exchanges a look with her before they're pummeled by kicks and punches.

“Hey!” a guy's voice booms from a few feet away. “Knock it off, assholes!”

“Shit.” The other boy grabs the arms of the girl and the boy with the Members Only jacket and gestures back the way they came. “Come on, guys. Let's go.”

“Losers!” Landing one last kick to Will's stomach, the three bullies tear in the other direction.

Once the bullies disappear, Will and El sit up, muscles aching. Groaning, Will rubs his bruised arms and gestures to El who's holding her hand to her head. “Are you okay?”

While El gives a stiff nod, the guy who yelled at the bullies appears beside them, extending hands to both of them. “You good?” Looking up, Will recognizes the friendly face of Jonathan's co-worker, Argyle. He and El take Argyle's hand and get to their feet.

“We're alright,” Will says, checking the scratches on his arms. His elbows are bloody, but the cuts aren't deep. He can feel bruises forming on his stomach and ribs though, but at this point, he's used to it.

Argyle nods his head in the direction the bullies ran. “Who were those numbskulls?”

“Mouthbreathers,” El murmurs.

He laughs. “Totally. Mouthbreathers.”

The three of them make their way down the block towards the pizza shop where Argyle and Jonathan work. “Just some jerks from school,” Will mumbles. His heart is still hammering in his chest. He can't _stand_ those assholes. “They've been messing with us ever since we moved here.”

Pulling open the door to the pizza shop, Argyle shrugs a shoulder. “You can always blackmail them.”

Following him inside, Will and El both furrow their brows. “Blackmail them?”

“Yeah,” Argyle continues, “but not really. You see-” He hops over the counter, ringing the service bell. “- you have to pretend you know something about them, slip a note in their locker or wherever, and tell them if they don't stop messing around, you'll tell everyone their secrets.”

Will and El make faces. “What if they don't have any secrets?”

“Oh-ho!” He waves his finger in the air. “Everyone has secrets, little man. Everyone.” He flashes them a grin, pulls on his _Surfer Boy_ hat, and disappears into the kitchen. Exchanging looks, Will and El slide into one of the booths by the window overlooking the street. El takes her math homework out of her backpack while Will shoves his backpack to the side and stares out the window. His arms sting, and each breath he takes sends an ache through his body. The urge to electrocute those jerks is still at the front of his mind. He hates it.

El taps her pencil on the table. “Will?”

His gaze drops from the window to El, only to see a look of confusion etched across her face. “Yeah?”

“Those words those mouthbreathers called us...”

“Don't-” Holding his hand up, Will gives a shake of his head. “Don't say them. Those aren't words you want to use.”

“What do they mean?”

“They're horrible words for people like me.”

Her eyebrows knit together. “People... like you?”

“Yeah, you know...” Glancing around the shop to make sure no one's near, he lowers his voice. “Gay people.”

“Oh.”

“Those words aren't used by nice people, and they use them on anyone they don't like even if they aren't gay. They use words like that to make people feel bad about themselves.”

Taking Will's hand, El looks into his eyes. “I'm sorry. I wish they wouldn't say that.”

“I wish so, too.”

They sit in silence for a moment. A small smile forms on his face, grateful for her presence in his life. Ever since their move to the city, they were all each other had. Yes, Jonathan's there when they need him, but with his focus on work and his plans to leave for college next year, it's been easier for Will to lean on El knowing she'll be there with him for the coming years. And there are definitely things she understands about him a lot better than Jonathan, to no fault of his brother.

Slumping down in the booth, El presses her palms to her forehead and frowns at her math homework. “Can you help me with the last two problems? I can't figure it out.”

“If I can remember how to do it.” He peers over at her paper and is relieved to see problems he actually recognizes. Grabbing his pencil, he starts scrawling in the answers, but El waves a hand at him.

“We're supposed to solve it like this.” She points to a formula at the top of the page that Will can barely decipher. Since when did this exist?

“What is that?”

El scrunches her nose. “I don't remember what it's called, but we're supposed to solve all the problems using it.”

“Okay, I'll try to figure it out.” He sighs looking at the formula. “I'm not great at math either.”

It takes them until the end of Jonathan's shift, fifteen minutes later, to finish the problems. In his _Surfer Boy_ uniform, Jonathan comes over to their booth and ruffles Will's hair. “Ready to go?”

“Yep, ready.” Will and El gather their bags and follow Jonathan out the door.

As they head to the car, Jonathan gestures to the gashes on Will's arms. “Were those jerks hassling you again?”

Glancing down at his arms, Will pulls down his sleeves to hide the injuries. “It's nothing.”

He knows Jonathan doesn't believe him, and why should he? They've been getting beat up and harassed for months. At this point, any injury, be it from the bullies or not, would make Jonathan raise an eyebrow.

Unconvinced, Jonathan directs his attention to El who clutches onto her backpack straps. “What happened this time?”

Will tries to give her a look to get her to keep quiet, but she keeps her eyes forward. “Chased us from school again,” she mumbles.

“If you need me to, I can try to ask for a different shift, so I can drive you two home from school.”

They reach the car, and Will puts his hand on the roof as he shakes his head. “No, don't do that. You don't have to waste your study hall waiting around for us. We can defend ourselves.” He slides into the passenger's seat, El hopping into the back. “Maybe I'll just zap them a bit. Give them a shock. Show them they can't mess around with us.” He shoots a smile at El who laughs.

Shutting the door, Jonathan turns to him with a frown. Their laughter stops. “That's not funny, Will. You can't make people suspicious. Even if they are messing with you.”

Heat rises to his cheeks. Looking down to his hands, Will nods. “Sorry, I was just joking.”

“I know.” Jonathan sighs, squeezing Will's shoulder before starting the car. “Just be careful.”

While they pull out of the parking lot, Will turns on the radio, dialing through the stations until he stops on “In Between Days” by The Cure.

“Why don't we stop by the drug store for bandages?” Jonathan suggests. He glances in the rearview mirror at El. “Didn't you need some cold medicine anyways?”

“Yes, okay,” El says while Will stares out the window at the passing shops and buildings. This coming weekend is his fifteenth birthday, and although he knows he should be excited about it, he's not. All he can think of is the fact that Mike is coming over, and they haven't spoken in months.

“Hey, bud,” Jonathan says, pulling Will out of his thoughts, “how was that history test you had today?”

Will winces. That history test is the bane of his existence. The whole history class, actually. Admittedly, most of his classes since their return from winter break have been going terribly. No matter how hard he tries, with everything going on, he can barely concentrate on a thing.

“I'm taking your silence as meaning it didn't go well?”

Slumping down in his seat, he lets out a groan. “It's not like I didn't try.”

“Hey, don't worry about it too much. It's just one test.”

He keeps himself from saying that no, it isn't just one test. If he had to make an estimate, he probably failed the last three tests and four quizzes. And that's just in history class. He doesn't even want to think about math class.

In a couple minutes, they reach the drug store and go inside to buy bandages and cough medicine. This isn't a one-off event, buying first aid supplies at the drug store. In fact, Will and El bought several packages of band-aids and aspirin a mere week ago after a fairly brutal beating at school. They try their best to hide their injuries from Jonathan and Joyce, but it's hard when they come home with two black eyes and swollen faces. At least they didn't have to worry about sneaking around today since Jonathan already knew about it.

Once they buy the medicine and bandages, they head home, rocking out to The Clash on the way. When they reach their apartment, Will's stomach curls in on itself the moment they walk through the door. His mom spots the scratches covering his arms, her face falling. “What happened now?”

He looks to the ground, shoulders slumped. Jonathan sets the bag from the drug store on the kitchen table. “It's those same kids as before.”

Will and El take a seat at the table while Joyce's face scrunches up. “I'm calling that school again. They can't let those kids get away-”

“You can't call them again,” Will begs, both him and El tense in panic. “It'll only make it worse. Those jerks know it was us who told on them last time.”

“I'm not going to let them get away with hurting you.” Joyce reaches for the phone but stops short when she sees the defeated look on Will's face. A sigh escapes her lips. “Okay, fine. What are their names?”

Will's eyebrows draw together. “What?”

“Those kids. Those ones who keep picking on you. What are their names?”

He and El glance at each other. “I don't know,” he says. “I never learned them.”

Joyce frowns. “You don't know their names?”

Ignoring Jonathan who's standing by the counter studying his and El's expressions, Will forges on. “No, they never said their names. It's a big school. Not everyone knows each other.”

“How did the principal know who to punish then?”

Will pauses. Shit... maybe he shouldn't have lied. Before he can make up an excuse, El says, “They made an announcement, and Will's friend knew who they were, so he told the principal their names.”

Joyce sighs. “Well, why don't you see if you can figure out their names tomorrow? Ask that friend of yours. That way, I can call their parents and explain to them what's going on.”

“Call their parents?”

“Or at least so I can go to their homes myself and confront them. I'm sick of these kids picking on you and hurting you.”

“Yeah, yeah, sure.”

Glancing at her watch, Joyce slaps her hand to her forehead. “Oh, right. Your appointment is in half an hour. Let me change, and we can leave in a couple minutes. Why don't you have a quick snack?” She gestures to the fridge before rushing to her room. The door rattles shut.

“Need help with the bandages?” Jonathan asks.

Going over to the fridge, Will shakes his head, grabbing two cheese sticks from behind the milk carton. “I can handle it myself.” He hands a cheese stick to El while biting into the other.

“If you say so.” After taking an apple from the fruit basket in the center of the table, Jonathan retreats to his bedroom.

Taking a seat, Will unrolls the bandage and wraps it around his elbow and forearm. Chewing her cheese stick, El leans forward, her voice quiet. “Why aren't we telling your mom their names?”

He notices the confusion in her eyes and chooses his words carefully. “If their parents confront them about what they're doing, they'll only be worse. Just like with the principal. No one likes a snitch.”

“Snitch?”

“Yeah. Someone who tells on other people. That's why they won't leave us alone after Mom called the school. They know we told them, and they got in trouble because of it. Not much trouble, apparently, but enough to piss them off. If they know we told their parents or if Mom goes to their _houses_ , they'll never leave us alone.”

“What are we supposed to do?”

Looking down at his hands, Will takes a moment to contemplate his plan. With a smile tugging at his lips, he meets El's eyes. “Fight back.”


	2. Making Plans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will talks to his therapist, and later goes to the roller rink with El where they discuss a plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the comments on the last chapter! I really appreciate them!<3  
> I created a spotify playlist to listen to in relation to this fanfic if you want to take a listen: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37oxKtWF13BHTnMQ8pxcdT

Across from his therapist, Will sits slumped in a large green chair, his mind clouded with memories of the past few months. His therapist, a middle-aged brunette woman wearing a pair of purple glasses, watches him without saying a word. This is his fourth session here, and although he doesn't want to admit it, talking to someone whom he isn't afraid will judge him has brought a bit of relief to his life. Not that he's delved into too much, but at least he knows if he does say something depressing, he's not going to receive those pitiful looks he gets from everyone else.

The ticking of the clock jars him from his thoughts. He turns his attention to its antique design. His therapist follows his gaze. “What interests you about my clock?”

Cheeks red, Will looks to her. “Oh, I don't know.”

“I've noticed you looking at it in our previous sessions as well.”

“I have?”

Her eyes focus on his. “Are you worried about the amount of time we have to speak?”

“I don't know. Not really.” He glances back at the clock. “I don't really think much of it when I look at it.”

“What are you thinking of?”

He shrugs. “Just everything. School, my friends, my family.”

“Last week, you mentioned a fight you had with your mother. Did you want to talk more about that?”

“Oh, that was just a misunderstanding.” When he realizes she's waiting for him to elaborate, his shoulders slump. Mentioning those assholes who keep going after him and El makes his blood boil. Even just thinking about them. “It's just... these people at school. They keep messing with me and my sister. We got in a fight at school last week, but they put all the blame on us. My mom was just angry since she thought I started the fight even though I didn't, and she's already annoyed that my grades aren't good.”

“Did you tell your mother how you felt?”

He furrows his eyebrows. “About the fight? Yeah, El and I explained everything to her. But then she called the principal.”

“How did that make you feel?”

“I don't know. Bad. Those jerks won't leave us alone now since they got in trouble, and they know that we told on them.”

“Did you think your mother was trying to protect you by calling the principal?”

“Of course. I mean... I'm not mad at _her_. I know she thinks she's doing what's best for us, but... I don't know.” A warmth burns in his chest. Thinking about those assholes makes him want to burn the whole place down. Shifting his gaze to the carpet, he shakes his head. “I want to talk about something else.”

She watches him for a moment, hands clasped together, resting back in her chair. “Okay.” She gives a slight nod. “What do you want to talk about?”

Settling down, Will picks at the fabric on the arm of the chair. The heaviness of the past few months weighs on his mind, but he pushes the burden away. “I don't know.”

“Have you been having nightmares?”

“I have them every night still. It's hard to sleep.”

“And is it the same general ideas? Your friends and family being hurt. Someone chasing after you.”

He nods.

“How has keeping a journal been working for you?”

“Fine, I guess. I write in it every night before I go to bed.”

“That's good. Do you think it's been helping you?”

He shrugs. “Maybe. It's nice to be able to write my thoughts down, I guess.”

“I know your birthday is coming up this weekend.”

“Saturday, yeah.” The thought of that day brings that awful feeling in the pit of his stomach back, the one which was all-too-familiar these past few months.

“Are you looking forward to it?”

Sighing, he shifts in the chair. “I guess so. My best friend's coming over to celebrate.”

“That's good, right?” When Will doesn't answer, she goes on, “How are you feeling about it?”

God awful, that's how. And that's how he's been feeling for weeks. He lets out a breath. “I'm not feeling so great about it.”

“Why is that?”

“Well... my friend – Mike – he had a bad accident happen to him a couple months ago, and I haven't seen or spoken to him since. I mean, I asked his sister to talk to him for me, but I haven't actually talked to him. I'm just a little nervous for this weekend because I... I feel pretty awful about not talking to him.”

“What do you think is the reason you didn't speak to him since his accident?”

“I don't know.” His stomach aches like he ate rotten meat. If his throat wasn't clamped shut right now, he would probably puke all over the carpet. Taking in a shaky breath, he clasps his hands on his lap. “Our last conversation wasn't exactly good... I guess I – I sort of feel like if I hadn't spoken to him, what happened to him never would have happened.”

“Do you feel as if speaking to him again will bring about another accident?”

“I don't know what I feel anymore,” he mumbles.

“That's okay. Figuring out your feelings can be tough.” She waits a couple seconds before leaning forward. “Do you have plans for what you're doing this weekend?”

Will lifts a shoulder. “We're gonna go to the arcade probably. Maybe get food.”

“That's good.”

“Should I apologize to Mike?” he asks in a small voice. “For what I did?”

She looks to him with a sympathetic smile. “It's up to you. I think it may be a good idea, so both of you understand what's going on.”

Looking down, Will nods. “Okay.”

When their session is done and Will exits the office, his whole body is numb. Joyce gets to her feet from where she was sitting in a chair in the hallway and walks over to him, rubbing his arm. “How was it?”

“Same as usual.” He follows her down the hall, trying not to think about the coming weekend.

“Did she tell you to keep journaling?”

“Yeah, she thinks it's good for me to write down whatever I don't want to tell people.” They reach the stairwell and head down the steps.

“Has it been helping?”

Will shrugs. “I don't mind it.” Pushing open the exit, they step out onto the sidewalk and into the lights of the city.

Joyce squeezes his shoulder. “I hope you know you can always come to me if you need to talk about anything.”

“I know, Mom.”

They smile to each other and head home. On the car ride back, Will finds himself thinking about the upcoming weekend, although he wishes he wouldn't. Butterflies fill his stomach each time he thinks about it. Thinks about Mike. Ever since he moved, nothing's been the same. Everything feels like a struggle, like he has to put ten times the amount of energy into everything he does now. The move started out fine; he actually enjoyed it for a while. The freshness of it. Being able to recreate himself. Not having to worry about his reputation from Hawkins. He could start new. Be a different person. But the way things are going, he wishes he never agreed to move.

When they get home, Will heads straight to his room, hoping to rest for a moment and listen to music. He goes to open the door and spots El sitting on her bed. She stares out the window, completely still. Motionless. He watches her for a minute to figure out what she's doing. All she does is stare out the window. Figuring she's just taking a moment to think, Will slips into the room, hopping onto his bed and tossing his pillow at her. Flinching, she averts her attention away from the window, eyes wide, before relaxing when her eyes meet Will's. With a chuckle, Will grabs the pillow back from her. “What are you doing?”

“Just thinking.” Setting the pillow down and taking a seat on the edge of his bed, Will watches her get to her feet. “Do you want to go see a movie?”

“Right now?”

She nods. “Then maybe we can go to the roller rink and make a plan to fight back, too.”

Getting up from his bed, Will waves his finger. “Good idea.” He and El grab their cash from their dresser before leaving the room and getting their jackets.

From the kitchen, Joyce glances up as Will and El put their shoes on. “Are you two going out?”

“We're going to see a movie and go to the Rollerlux,” Will says, adjusting his foot in his shoe. “We'll be back around seven.”

“Okay, have fun,” Joyce calls as they head out the door.

The movie theater is fairly desolate when they arrive. Glancing at the list of movies showing, Will turns to El. “Which one do you wanna see?”

El studies the movies before gesturing to one with Molly Ringwald in the poster. “That one?”

“Okay.” They walk up to the counter. “Two for _Pretty In Pink_ , please.”

Once they buy their tickets, with a large popcorn and a couple boxes of candy, the two of them head inside the theater, sliding into a set of seats near the back. As they watch the trailers playing, memories of last summer come to Will's mind. Sitting in the dark theater, Mike by his side. Stealing glances at each other, although they never admitted it at the time. Max and Lucas giggling to each other in the row in front of them. What he would give to go back in time.

He's pulled out of his thoughts by the laughter of a couple trotting past them and to a row ahead. The couple, a black-haired boy and platinum-haired girl, swagger down the aisle, confidence radiating off them. The boy is dressed in a band t-shirt, the sleeves ripped off, and distressed black jeans. The girl, the entirety of her ears baring glittering diamond studs, has a denim vest over a leather dress and ripped black stockings. Both are wearing heavy eyeliner and nose rings.

Staring at this breath-taking pair, an idea pops into Will's head. An idea that had been brewing in the back of his mind since Jonathan showed him _Suburbia_ a few weeks earlier. A complete change in appearance.

He spins around to face El. “I have an idea,” he whispers, a smile growing on his face. “A momentary one, but one that can help us figure out who we want to be.”

El's eyebrows draw together. “What?”

“A makeover!” He squeezes her shoulder, popping a piece of popcorn in his mouth and gesturing to the couple a few rows ahead. “Just look at those two. Their confidence. Like they don't give a shit what anyone thinks of them. It's perfect.”

Leaning forward to get a better look at the couple, El frowns. “How will that help us figure out who we want to be?”

“Just think about it.” He nudges her. “How are we supposed to figure out who we are if we don't try to change things up a bit? Experiment a little.” Holding onto the seat in front of him, Will rocks forward. “Imagine it for a second. Walking into school like total badasses. No one will want to mess with us. Especially not those assholes.”

A smile plays at El's mouth. “Total badasses.”

They exchange grins before the movie starts, and they settle down. Excitement stays with Will throughout the entire movie and once they're out of the theater and on their way to the roller rink, he rattles off ideas to El. “We can get some of Jonathan's old shirts and rip the sleeves off,” he says as they walk across the street. “I think there are some boxes in the closet of old clothes my mom wants to donate, too.”

El crosses her arms. “How do we know those mouthbreathers won't mess with us more?”

“By changing up our look?” When El nods, Will goes on, “We don't really. But isn't it worth the try? I mean, of course we'll figure out a plan to get back at them, too, but since we've been wanting to find our style more anyways, changing things up can't hurt.”

They reach Rollerlux Arcade and pull open the doors. The place is bustling with people, arcade games dinging and music playing over the speakers. Dodging out of the way of a group of older teenagers, Will and El duck over to the counter to get skates. “What about our hair?” El asks. “Should we do something with it?”

Before Will can answer, someone calls, “Well, if it isn't the dynamic duo themselves.” A boy with a massive mohawk walks around them, a pair of skates in his hand, and ducks around the counter. After sticking the skates in a slot, he spins around, leans against the counter, and flashes Will and El a grin. He's a classmate of theirs, and one of the first people they met when they moved here. “What can I do for you today? Food, drinks? Couple pairs of skates?”

“Can we get skates?” El asks.

The boy, Daniel, smiles, and gives her a bow. “Of course, Miss Eleanor. Seven and nine?”

Will and El nod. Daniel grabs two pairs of skates and hands them each a pair. “Have fun.”

They thank him, giving him the money for the skates before going to a bench to put them on. As Will ties his skates, El worries her lip. “Do you have any ideas to fight back?” She gets to her feet, balancing on the skates.

“I'm not sure.” Once Will's skates are tied, he gets up and follows El out onto the rink. “We have to do it carefully. We don't want them to know it was us or else they'll have ten times more of a reason to beat us up... but then again, if they don't know it's us, then they'll think they can keep messing with us...”

“Why don't we just beat them up, too?”

“Did you forget what happened the last time we tried that?” He sighs, skating a little ahead of her. “Plus, do you know how to actually fight someone? 'Cause I sure don't. If you haven't noticed, I can't exactly throw a punch. And even if I did, it wouldn't make much of an impact against those jerks. They're, like, a foot taller than us and fifty pounds heavier.”

She rolls her eyes. “Okay, so what are we supposed to do?”

“That's what I'm trying to figure out.”

They skate a couple laps around the rink until Will grabs onto the railing and turns to face El. “Are you thinking we should make a plan for tomorrow or should we wait until we come back from spring break?”

El puts her hands on her hips. “I'd like to send them a message as soon as we can.”

“Yeah... me, too.”

“You _could_ figure out a way to use your powers against them.”

Will frowns. “I can't-”

“You can do it without anyone realizing it's you. That's the point. You can still get back at them without risking someone finding out.”

“But it is still a risk. That's why we should get back at them some other way. And besides, it won't change the fact that they'll still keep coming after us. We need to figure out a way to stop them from coming after us altogether.”

“How?”

That's the problem. He has no clue. Over and over in his mind for months, he wondered how the hell they were supposed to stop these assholes from coming after them, and he couldn't figure it out. They tried physically fighting back, which lasted about half a second. They tried running away from them, but the bullies always caught up. The farthest they got from making a difference was getting the principal to reprimand them. That of course, only made things worse. El kept telling him to use his powers against them, but he can't bring himself to do it, especially knowing how disappointed Jonathan would be in him if he did. Some days, he worries Jonathan is scared of what Will's capable of, and if he's being honest, he's scared of what he could be capable of, too.

“It's six forty,” El says, looking at the clock on the wall. “We should go home.”

The two of them head back to the bench and change out of the skates. As they walk up to the counter, El says, “Do you think we could go to a store to find clothes or makeup?”

Will hums. “I'm not sure if we have enough money.”

“Oh. Yeah.”

From the back room, Daniel walks out and leans against the counter. “You two heading out?”

“Yeah.” Will and El hand him their skates, and he puts them back in their slots.

“See you at school,” Will says.

They turn to go but stop when Daniel says, “Hey, if you two are looking for a place to get some threads, there's a thrift store about a block East of here on the corner by that Italian restaurant. I get a lot of my stuff from there since it's cheap.”

“You do?” Will is surprised Daniel would shop for clothes somewhere like that. From what he's seen, his family's loaded.

“Yeah, man. Check it out. You can find some pretty neat stuff if you look.”

Will and El exchange glances before looking back at Daniel, both of them with smiles on their faces. “Thanks. We'll check it out.”

They wave goodbye and head off towards the store. As they walk down the street, Will goes over a plan in his head. If they want to send a message to those bullies as soon as possible, tomorrow's the perfect day to do it. It'll be the last day of school before the break which will give him and El a chance to escape them for a week which will give them time to make a more thorough plan.

They reach the corner of the street. Opening his mouth, Will halts in his place and grabs El's arm, gesturing at the store beside the Italian restaurant. “Oh, look! That's perfect! How much money do we have?” He pulls six dollars out of his pocket and a couple quarters. El shows him five dollars. “That's good enough, right? Maybe we can get a couple things.” Locking arms, they race across the street and into the store.

People of all sorts are shopping around the store, going back-and-forth through the aisles and aisles of clothes. “Come on.” Will pulls El along down the aisles, scouring each rack for the perfect article of clothing. They grab clothes off the racks, holding them up to the mirrors to figure out which ones they like best while discussing their plan to fight back against the bullies.

“So what I was thinking,” Will says as he glances over a denim jacket with a dragon on the back, “was that before first period, we tell our teachers that we need to go to the nurse, so then we can go out by the back stairwell where those jerks always hang out during first period.” He shakes his head, putting the jacket back on the rack. “We can get Daniel to say on the announcements for everyone to go there, too, so then they can see them. Public humiliation.”

El tries on a blazer three sizes too big. “And do what?”

“A prank of some sort...” He slumps down on a chair at the end of one of the aisles. “I can't think of what to do to them though. Any ideas?”

He glances up when she lets out a sigh. “What's wrong?”

She looks away from the shirt in her hands, her voice quiet. “I just wish my powers would come back already. I feel so... useless.”

The hopelessness on her face makes Will's stomach twist in a knot. “Hey.” Standing up and putting a hand on her shoulder, he meets her eyes. “You're not useless; you're one of the only things keeping me going right now. We're in this _together_ , okay? And your powers, they'll come back. I know it. We just have to be a little more patient.”

A small smile tugs at El's lips. With a grin, Will snaps his fingers. “Paint!”

“What?”

“Paint! For our plan! We can gather a bunch of paint and launch it on those jerks.”

“You think that'll work?”

“I hope so. At least it'll be funny.” Behind her, Will spots two pairs of sunglasses on a rack. “Yes!” Grinning, he snatches the sunglasses, examining them before handing a pair to El and putting on the other. He looks at the two of them in the mirror. “Perfect.”

She smiles, wrapping her arms around him. “Bitchin'.”

With a laugh, he nods. “Yeah. Bitchin'.”


	3. This Place Sucks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will and El talk to Max, and Joyce has a word with Will.

Sorting through clothes on the floor, Will leans his back against his bed, listening to El talking on their ham radio with Max. They speak every few weeks whenever Max has the time to get to Cerebro since she prefers not to call from her house, but it's been over a month since they last spoke. Actually, calls from the rest of the Party have been scarce lately. The last person Will spoke to from Hawkins was Nancy, and that was three weeks ago.

Holding the radio up, El sits beside Will, legs curled to her chest. “They're still not back, but I've been trying to practice.”

Will holds up an old Joy Division shirt, examining it. “And El's been helping me out a lot, too. By the time her powers do come back, I think we'll both be a bit more comfortable using them.” At least, he hopes so. Every few days, he practices turning lights and other electronic devices on and off, which isn't much, but he's noticed that the more he practices, the less his nose bleeds. He isn't sure what to make of it, though he hopes it's a sign he's getting better.

“Do you think once El gets her powers back,” Max says, “you guys will be able to come back to Hawkins? Since both of you will have your powers and can help us if things go sideways.”

Will and El exchange glances. As much as they want to, the idea of returning to Hawkins seems pretty far-fetched. At least for the time being. Leaning forward, El speaks into the radio. “We're not sure. It's Will's mom's decision.”

From the other end, Max lets out a sigh. She seems to be doing that a lot lately.

El frowns. “What is it?”

“I just wish you guys could come back.”

“We do, too.”

“Man, this place _sucks_ right now.”

The sharpness in her voice makes Will's forehead crease. Was it really that bad in Hawkins? “I thought things were getting better since the break? At least, with Dustin and Mike.”

“It was for a while, but lately, it's been worse than it was before.” She groans. “It's that stupid Hellfire Club and Lucas's stupid teammates. They're at each other's throats. I've been trying my best to stay out of all that shit, but I have a bad feeling something horrible's gonna happen soon.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Just... I don't know. There's this weird sort of... aura. It's like everything here is tense, like it's waiting for something to happen so it can strike.”

“So what can strike?”

“Not anything specific. Like I said, it's just a feeling.”

That doesn't sound good. Will knows very well that 'feelings' aren't always meaningless. Bad things can follow those feelings.

“I'm sorry, Max,” El says.

“You don't have to apologize for anything. All the crap that's going on has nothing to do with you guys.” She lets out a laugh. “Honestly, this whole year's been a drag.”

“I wish you could come visit.”

“In my dreams.” She sighs. “Anyways, what are you guys up to? Have you electrocuted the shit out of those assholes who keep bullying you?”

El cracks a smile when Will laughs. “I wish,” he says, “but I'd rather not be abducted by the government and have them run tests on me.”

“Isn't there some way you can use your powers to mess with them without them knowing it's you? You can zap them every so often until they go crazy.”

Will guffaws. “Okay, Max, I'll just go around zapping them. Then they'll definitely leave us alone.”

“It was just a suggestion. Besides, if they do find out you have powers, what can they do about it? Everyone will think they're crazy if they try to tell people.”

“I know... but Jonathan would hate me if I did anything.”

“He's not your boss; he's your brother. And I'm sure he would understand.”

He glances at El before shrugging. “I don't know. We'll see.”

“You can't be afraid of fighting back,” Max says. “If they treat you like garbage, it's only fair you do the same.”

“I'm not afraid of fighting back.” Will rolls his eyes. “Anyways, it doesn't matter. We're making a plan to get back at them.”

“Ooo, really? What is it?”

Smile on her face, El sits forward. “We're dumping paint on them.”

Max laughs. “Dumping paint on them?”

“Yes, they always hang out in a stairwell at school, so we're going to throw paint on them and get the rest of the school to see.”

“That should be interesting.”

“It's just a short-term solution,” Will explains. “Obviously it's not gonna solve everything, but since it's the last day of school before break, we figured it couldn't hurt to get back at them a little.”

“Huh. So... you guys are still gonna figure out a way to get back at them for good though? Later on, I mean?”

“Hopefully. We're going to figure out a plan over spring break.”

“Good. Tell me how it goes.”

“Will do.”

“So... have either one of you spoken to Mike yet?”

His stomach drops. He should've expected the question at some point, but it still doesn't take away the tightness in his chest that's been there since they got the call. Glancing at El, he notices her watching him closely. Will looks back to the clothes on the floor.

Twirling the end of her hair, El leans back against the bed. “I talked to him on the phone a couple weeks after we tried to see him.”

Max doesn't say anything.

“How-” Eyes still on the clothes, Will clears his throat. “How's Mike doing?”

“Oh, um...” Max pauses. “I've seen him at the video store a few times and around school. He's also been talking to Lucas, which I'd say is good.”

Will furrows his eyebrows. “So... is Lucas on good terms with you guys again?”

Max huffs. “Hardly. He's only talking to Mike because he feels bad about New Year's.”

“Oh.” Whenever he's reminded of the conflict between his friends, a knot forms in Will's stomach. He always thought the Party would get through things together forever. Of all the things to tear them apart, rather than it being the Mind Flayer or any of the Upside Down-related drama, it turns out it's high school. “Dustin said a couple weeks ago that Mike joined the Hellfire Club.”

“Yeah... yeah. They keep trying to get me to join still, but I really don't care.”

El leans closer to the radio. “Do you have any new friends?”

“Pfft, no. Other than seeing Dustin and Mike, I've just been hanging out at the video store sometimes. I've seen a few new people in town hanging around there who seem cool, but I haven't spoken to them. What about you guys? Any new friends yet? Wasn't there some guy you mentioned who works at a roller rink?”

Perking up, a grin forms on El's face. “Daniel. He's really nice.” She nudges Will's shoulder. “And you like Daniel, too.”

“Yeah, yeah, Daniel's cool. He's in my art class,” he explains to Max. “He's got this sick mohawk and an awesome dragon tattoo on his arm.”

Max chuckles. “I didn't know you were into tattoos and mohawks.”

When El lets out a giggle, Will's cheeks turn red. “I'm not – that's not what-”

“Relax, relax!” Max laughs. “I'm joking. But that's good that you two are making some friends there.”

“Took us long enough,” Will mumbles. “Seriously, this place sucks.”

“It's not that bad,” El says, snatching a bandana from him. “Some people are really nice.”

“ _Some_ people, sure. And _some_ people are total numbskulls.”

“There are numbskulls everywhere,” Max says. “I mean, not everyone was that welcoming when I came to Hawkins.”

Will and El murmur in agreement.

“Oh, yeah! Will, your birthday's this Saturday, isn't it?”

“Yep.”

“Happy birthday! Are you excited? Fifteen, right?”

“Yeah.” He shrugs. “I'm pretty stoked, I guess. Mike's coming over with Nancy, so I'm happy that we get to see them.”

“Nancy and Jonathan are still going on strong?”

“I guess.”

“Will?” his mom calls. “Can you come here for a minute?”

Will and El exchange glances. “I'll be back.” Frowning, Will gets to his feet and leaves the room. When he gets to the kitchen, he sees his mom standing by the table, a crumpled paper in her hand. His stomach drops. On Monday, they got their report cards for the quarter, and it wasn't pretty. Seeing as he'd been arguing with his mom earlier that week, showing her the two Fs and three Ds on his report card wouldn't go well. So, he crumpled up the paper and shoved it to the bottom of the bathroom trashcan. How she found it, he didn't know.

His mom's forehead is creased, a frown on her face. “Can you take a seat?”

He sits across from her, keeping his head down.

She tosses the paper in front of him, the Fs and Ds glaring back at him. “Would you like to explain why I found this in the trash?”

“Why were you searching in the trash in the first place?” he murmurs.

Joyce stares at him. “I threw something out a couple days ago, which I shouldn't have. I was looking for it when I found this. I just want to know why you threw it away without telling me.”

His stomach curls together. He hates the way she's staring at him like something's wrong with him. So what if he threw away his report card? Since when did she care about his grades in the first place? She never cared until now. It's all because of those stupid assholes at school.

“Sweetie,” she says, taking a seat across from him, “I don't care about the grades. I know this move and going to a new school is tough. All I want is to know what's going on.”

“Nothing's going on.”

“Clearly something is. Is it those kids at school? The ones who keep bothering you and El?”

He leers at her.

“I can't help if you don't talk to me.”

“You don't help even when I _do_ talk to you,” he shoots back. “I told you you can't call the school 'cause it'll only make things worse, but you didn't _listen_ to me.”

“What was I supposed to do? Let them keep hurting you?”

“No, but...” He rubs his knuckles against his temples. His mind swirls with thoughts, and he can't figure out what to say. “I'm not a baby. I can handle things on my own.”

“Oh, I know that.” She reaches for his hand, but he moves it away. Her smile falters. “I'm sorry, sweetie. I'm just worried about you. I want to make sure you're okay.”

Make sure he's okay? She's barely been around since they moved, doing God knows what, rushing off to take phone calls at absurd hours and going out without saying where, and now she wants to know if he's okay?

When Will doesn't answer, Joyce wrings her hands together. “Is this about Mike? I know you've been worried about him.”

A lump lodges in his throat.

“Have you spoken to him yet?”

He stares back at her.

“If you want, I can get Lonnie to take you boys to the arcade or a game or wherever you want on Saturday.”

At the mention of his father's name, he freezes. Gaping at her, he whispers, “What are you talking about?”

Her eyebrows knit together before realization hit her. “Oh, sweetie, I'm sorry.” She puts her hand to her head. “With everything going on, I completely forgot to tell you. Your dad's coming over this weekend for your birthday.”

His voice catches in his throat. “What?”

“He called yesterday and said he wants to see you and Jonathan since it's been so long, and he said he's doing well right now.”

All Will can do is stare at her. His voice is gone.

“It's only for the weekend. Saturday and Sunday, okay? You haven't seen him in so long, I figured it would be good for you.” She watches him. “Is that okay?”

“I...” His throat feels like it's glued shut, forcing him to choke out his words. “I'm going to... to bed.” Blood pounding in his ears, he stumbles to his feet and rushes to his room, shutting the door and collapsing against it.


	4. Thanksgiving

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mike and Nancy come over to the Byers' place for Thanksgiving.

When Thanksgiving of nineteen eighty-five came about, not much had changed between the Party yet. It had been around a month since the Byers and El left, and everyone was adjusting to the change. The minute Will and El got settled in their new room, they set up their ham radio in order to reach Dustin's Cerebro and talk to everyone without holding up the phone line. Since Mike still hadn't broken things off with El, she was under the impression that they were still going steady and used every free moment she had to call Mike. Will did his best to give them the time they needed to sort things out, but after several weeks of the obsessive calling, he was getting impatient.

“I'm serious, Mike,” Will told him one day when he was able to sneak into their room while El was watching a show on the TV. He kept his voice as quiet as possible, for fear El might come in at any moment. “You can't keep leading her on like this. It's mean.”

“I'm not trying to,” Mike said, “but I don't want to just break up with her over the radio!”

“Then you have to at least tell her to calm down with the calls. It's driving me insane. And you barely even talk to her; it's like she's just talking the whole time.”

“What am I supposed to do? Tell her she's not allowed to call me anymore?”

“Of course not, but I'm just saying you should try to communicate with her at least. It's like the less you talk, the more she wants to call you.”

“So you want me to talk to her _more_?”

“I want you to figure something out. And don't ask me for any more help because you started this in the first place.”

By the time November rolled around, El was calling Mike less and less and talking to Will more. A welcome change. Things were starting to look up, Will and El growing closer, and a few days before Thanksgiving, he told her he was gay. She didn't seem too phased by it which relieved him, but what surprised him was that she already knew what being gay meant because Max told her when they were reading Wonder Woman comics.

Soon after this, the day before Mike and Nancy were to arrive, she asked him, “How do you know when you like someone?”

“What do you mean?”

“How do you know if you want someone to be your boyfriend or girlfriend and not your friend? How can you tell?”

Will furrowed his eyebrows at this. “I think you just... know. I mean, think about you and Mike and you and me. You don't like us in the same way.”

This seemed to confuse her even more.

“Honestly, El, I think you just know after a while. You can't really force yourself to like someone if you just don't. It's not something you have to think too hard about.”

Thanksgiving break brought a flurry of calls from the Party – mostly from Mike, Lucas, and Dustin – everyone sharing stories of how high school was going so far. According to Lucas, Max was acting distant, barely speaking to the rest of the Party at all, but given the circumstances, they weren't surprised. After what happened at the mall, she and El were impacted by the deaths the most, but El had the Byers to lean on at home while Max's home situation was surely worse off than before.

Although Mike spoke with Will over Cerebro, El and Mike hadn't spoken in more than a week when Thanksgiving arrived. Will was pretty sure El was avoiding him because whenever Will offered her the radio to speak with him, she went off to do something else.

On Thanksgiving, Mike and Nancy arrived in the evening, bags in hand and offering up a casserole for the dinner. They were staying for three days, leaving on Sunday morning, which meant Will had to get Mike and El to talk.

“You two look great!” Joyce greeted Mike and Nancy as they walked into the Byers' apartment. “I'm glad you could make it.”

“Thank you for having us,” Nancy said, carrying the casserole in her arms. Jonathan helped her with it, heading to the kitchen to set it on the table.

The moment Mike laid his eyes on Will, he surged forward and wrapped him in a hug. “I missed you,” he murmured in his ear before pulling away. They exchanged smiles. Mike's hair was longer, curlier, and he was even taller than the last time they'd seen each other, but Will was catching up. At this point, Will was already taller than Jonathan, although Jonathan liked to deny it.

Mike turned to El and gave her a hug. “How's everything going here?”

“Not bad. Still adjusting,” Will said and nudged El on the elbow, “but at least we have each other.”

She gave him a smile, clutching onto his arm.

“Everyone says happy Thanksgiving, by the way,” Mike said. “I'm sure they called you over Cerebro.”

El nodded. “Dustin told us you were going to join clubs.”

“Maybe.” Mike shrugged. “I haven't decided yet. Other than AV, there's not much else I want to stay after school for. What about you guys? Thinking of joining anything?”

“Not at the moment,” Will said.

“I have to focus on schoolwork,” El explained.

“Oh, yeah. How is school going for you?” Mike asked.

“Okay. I like my teacher.”

“That's good.”

“Want to see our room?”

Mike straightened up. “Sure.” He slid his bag onto his shoulder and followed them down the hall and into the last room on the right. It was a good-sized room, around the same size as Will's old room, with a window above their desk overlooking an alleyway. A stack of unopened boxes sat in the corner beside their dresser.

Mike glanced around. “Nice place you got here.”

Will gestured to the floor between his and El's beds. “You can sleep here if that's okay. We've got extra blankets and pillows you can use. Oh, yeah.” Going over to the nightstand, he picked up a plush frog from beside the lamp and waved it in the air. “And the frog.”

Smiling, Mike set his bag on the floor, walked over to Will, and took the frog from him. He flipped it around in his hands before meeting Will's eyes. “Thanks.”

As Will gazed back at Mike, all he could think of was kissing him. He hated how he kept thinking about it, but the thoughts wouldn't go away, especially after moving. And now with Mike right here in front of him, the thoughts were amplified ten-fold.

They turned their heads when El turned on the boombox, blasting “Into The Groove” by Madonna. Will rolled his eyes. Of all their differences, their opposing tastes in music annoyed Will the most. Sure, El liked some of the songs he had her listen to, but the majority of the time, she played whatever Top 40 crap was on the radio.

After setting the frog down by his bag, Mike wandered over to the dresser and glanced at the knick-knacks covering it. “Anywhere interesting nearby? Places to go to?”

El frowned when Will turned off the boombox. “The Rollerlux.”

“Roller what?”

“It's a roller rink and arcade a few minutes away,” Will explained. “They have food, too, and it's nice 'cause it's all pretty cheap.”

Mike gestured to El. “You know how to roller skate?”

“Will's been teaching me.”

Taking a seat on the edge of El's bed, Will let out a laugh. “I can barely do it myself.”

While Mike went over to the other side of the room, Will shot El a look when she turned the boombox back on. “Can't you listen to that later?”

“No.”

Will huffed but turned his attention to Mike who was staring at the _Jaws_ poster above his bed. “Do you want to check it out sometime? The Rollerlux, I mean.”

“Sure,” Mike said. “It sounds neat. Hey, where's your mom work anyways?”

“Just some store on the other side of the city. But Jonathan just got a job at a pizza place by our school.”

“Nice. Do you get free pizza?”

“Discounted.”

“Dinner's ready!” Joyce called from the kitchen. Jumping to his feet, Will shut off the boombox – earning himself a glare from El – and the three of them left the room and took their seats at the kitchen table. Will sat in between El and Mike, with Nancy next to her brother, Jonathan beside her, and Joyce in between Jonathan and El.

After everyone filled their plates with food, Joyce glanced around the table. “Why don't we all go around and say what we're thankful for? Anyone want to start?”

Nancy waved her hand. “I can start.”

With a smile, Joyce gestured for her to go ahead.

“I'm thankful for this wonderful food, being able to come here for the break, and this guy right here.” She rubber Jonathan's shoulder. “I'm thankful you invited us over. This is really great.” Nudging Jonathan, she tilted her head to him. “What are you thankful for?”

“Um, I'm thankful for you, of course.” They shared a smile. “And I'm thankful for you, Mom, and you, Will. And you too, El. Without all of you, things would be a lot harder.”

Reaching across the table, Joyce squeezed his hand. “And I'm thankful for you. I don't know how I would survive without you.” She looked to the rest of the table. “I'm also thankful that this move is going well. I was afraid it wouldn't, but I really think things are looking up for all of us.” She turned to El. “What about you, El? Are you thankful for anything?”

Leaning her elbows on the table, she nodded. “My friends. Family.”

Everyone's gaze fell on Will. He clasped his hands together, staring at his plate. “I'm thankful for... everyone. Everyone who's there for me. All of you, and the Party, and anyone else who's helped me through the past few years. And I'm thankful for being alive.” He mumbled the last sentence quickly so as not to dwell on it.

Teary-eyed, Joyce put her hand over her heart. “Oh, sweetie, we are too. So, _so_ thankful.” She looked like she was about to cry – if Mike and Nancy hadn't been there, Will is sure she would have – before she shook her head and focused her attention onto Mike. “How about you, Mike?”

Straightening up, Mike glanced around the table. “I'm thankful for... for...” Hesitating, he caught Will's eye. “...for being here.”

They shared a smile, a blush creeping up Will's neck. Sitting back in his chair, Will hoped no one else noticed. Beside him, El tapped her fork on her plate. “Can we eat?”

Joyce laughed. “Yes, yes. Go ahead.”

Everyone picked up their forks and knives and dug into their food.

“Thank you for bringing the casserole,” Joyce said to Mike and Nancy.

Nancy took a bite of turkey. “No problem, Mrs. Byers. It was so nice of you for inviting us, and this meal's amazing.”

With a grin, Joyce motioned to Jonathan. “You can thank our master chef for most of it.”

Nancy lifted her glass. “To Jonathan.”

The rest of them lifted theirs. “To Jonathan!”

Laughing, they clanged their glasses together and sipped their drinks. They began discussing what they'd been up to for the past month. Nancy and Jonathan, being seniors, had been working on college applications and already sent theirs in for early application. While they were discussing this, Will felt someone's foot knock against his own. Glancing to the side, he noticed Mike watching him. Eyebrows drawing together, Will looked back at his food. Ever since their conversation in the summer about staying only friends, Mike would make little gestures and sneaking remarks aimed solely at Will in an attempt, Will assumed, at flirting. At least, he hoped. But the fact that he hoped that made it ten times worse. It was _his_ choice to figure out things separately. To rely on themselves for once rather than each other. Plus, Mike still hadn't broken things off with El or came out to anyone other than Will. And yet... he still wanted Mike to want him.

He flinched when Mike pressed his knee against Will's. Breath shallow, he snuck a look at Mike to figure out what he was doing. All Mike did, above the table that is, was eat his mashed potatoes. Underneath the table, Mike knocked his foot against Will's. Will wanted to scream. His muscles ached with the desire to jump up and get out of there. Escape. Was Mike doing this on purpose?

“So, Will,” Nancy's voice cut through his thoughts. Will leaned forward until his chest pressed against the edge of the table, focusing on Nancy rather than the hand sliding up his leg. “I hear you've been practicing your powers.”

Swallowing, Will nodded. “El's been helping me with it while she tries to regain hers.”

“I'm just curious,” Nancy said, “because Jonathan here doesn't seem to know... where did they come from? Your powers, I mean.”

He looked at his mom and brother before shrugging. “I don't know. They just came to me.”

“Do you think it had something to do with your possession last year?”

Jonathan set his fork down. “Why don't we not talk about that right now?”

“No, it's fine,” Will assured him and looked back at Nancy. “I don't really know where it came from. I think it might have been there for a while.”

“For a while?”

“Yeah, I don't know.” If he was being honest, his powers were never a surprise when he actually thought about it. Denial was the main roadblock from admitting they were there in the first place.

Jonathan kept shooting glares at Nancy, but all she did was shoot a glare back at him before leaning forward to Will. “And they're... electricity powers? Fire powers? Both?”

“I don't know. I think the electricity starts the fires. I'm not entirely sure.” His body grew tense as Mike's hand slid further up his leg.

“Do you need electricity in order for you to use them? Can you do it without-”

“Nancy, would you leave him alone?” Jonathan hissed.

Everyone's gaze fell on him, including Mike who paused his hand from moving further up Will's leg. Tucking her hair behind her ear, Nancy made a face and poked the casserole on her plate.

Jonathan frowned, but before he could say anything, El said, “He's getting a lot better when we practice.”

No one spoke until Nancy let out a short sigh and looked up from her plate to El and Will. “What is it you're practicing?”

“Turning things off and on basically,” Will said whilst grasping Mike's hand underneath the table to keep him from moving it again. “Nothing too complicated.”

“And you're practicing to regain your powers?” she asked El.

“Yes.” El shrugged. “There hasn't been any change though.”

“Oh, don't worry,” Nancy said. “I'm sure they'll come back in no time.”

As she continued to talk, Will froze when Mike slid his hand up Will's forearm, trailing over his wrist, pulling the sleeve of his shirt up, and making every inch of skin he touched burn. Heart jolting into his throat, Will lurched to his feet, his chair screeching against the floor. Everyone stared at him, except for Mike whose eyes were wide and gaping at the space in front of him. “I have to use the bathroom.” Tossing his napkin on his chair, he rushed out of the kitchen and flung himself into the bathroom, locking the door behind him. He stared at his reflection in the mirror. A ghost of himself stared back. Jesus, his skin was as pale as a sheet. What was wrong with him?

Turning on the faucet, he sucked in a breath, splashed some water on his face, and willed away the tight knot in his stomach. As much as he was scared to go back to the table, he also wondered what exactly Mike was doing. They'd agreed not to be more than friends for now. Mike knew that. But every time Mike seemed to hint that he wanted to change that, Will was both reluctant and hopeful. He sure didn't mind the attention Mike paid him.

He dried off his face and headed back to the kitchen. “Mike,” Joyce was saying while Will returned to his seat. “I never asked, how are you liking high school?”

Shooting a glance at Will, Mike lifted a shoulder. “It's fine. Not much different from middle school.”

“How are your classes?”

“They're mostly good. We're dissecting frogs in biology which is pretty neat. I'm not a huge fan of gym class though, but I never was in the first place.”

Nancy took a bite of her casserole. “Is that what you keep ditching?”

Mike narrowed his eyes. “What?”

“Mom said the school called because you keep missing some class.”

Baffled, Mike put his fork down. “Mom didn't tell me that.”

“So you are skipping gym?”

Jonathan met Will's eyes before he looked to Nancy and Mike. “Don't hassle him too much, Nance. I skipped my fair share of gym classes.”

Nancy glanced over at Joyce.

“First time I'm hearing of this,” Joyce said, her tone light.

The way Nancy looked back at Jonathan, her forehead creased and mouth set in a frown, made Will want to run away from the table again. “I'm not hassling him. I was just curious.”

Before Nancy and Jonathan could say anything else, Will set his fork and knife down and looked to his mom. “What's for dessert?”

Joyce's face lit up. “Ah, yes!” She stood from her chair and went to the fridge, opening it and taking out a pumpkin pie. “I bought this from the supermarket.” Setting it down on the table, everyone leaned over to look at it.

“It looks delicious,” El said as Joyce put whipped cream on it.

“It does, doesn't it?” She sliced into the pie, placing a piece on everyone's plates, and once everyone was served, they dug in. As they ate, Jonathan talked about his new job and co-workers while the only thing on Will's mind was Mike.

Once dessert was finished, Will and El went to their room with Mike and gathered on Will's bed. “What's with your sister?” Will mumbled to Mike, taking out his sketchbook from the nightstand drawer. “Why's she asking all those questions about my powers?”

Mike shifted beside him. “Beats me. She's always asking too many questions.”

“Well, it's not that she's asking too many questions exactly. I'm just wondering _why_ she's asking so many.”

“Maybe she's curious,” El said. “Everyone used to ask me about my powers.”

“That's true.” Will sunk back against the headboard and opened his sketchbook while Mike and El talked about school. He was sketching out Will the Wise when El left for the bathroom.

Mike leaned over his shoulder. “What's Will the Wise up to?”

“Trying to figure that out,” Will murmured. He continued to draw as Mike watched.

He put down his pencil when he heard the toilet flush and faucet turn on. Tossing his sketchbook onto the bed, he got to his feet, turned to Mike, and grabbed him by the shirt collar. Mike's eyebrows furrowed. Pulling him closer, Will hissed in Mike's ear, “Talk to her already. Now's your chance.” Letting go of Mike, Will patted him on the shoulder and left the room.

“Bathroom,” he mumbled to El as he passed her in the hallway. She gave him a smile, continuing to the bedroom. Instead of going to the bathroom, he continued down the hall and peered into the kitchen. Nancy and his mom were talking by the sink, washing dishes, while Jonathan put the leftovers in the fridge.

Grabbing the casserole from the table, Jonathan glanced up at Will. “Hey, bud. What's up?”

“Not much.”

He watched Jonathan stick the casserole in the fridge before looking back at him. “What are you up to? Where are Mike and El?”

“Talking.”

Jonathan focused on him. Closing the fridge, he gestured for Will to follow him and lead him to his room. He shut the door then faced him. “What's going on?”

Will plopped down on Jonathan's bed. “Mike is breaking up with El.”

“Right now?”

He nodded.

Sitting beside his brother, Jonathan drew his eyebrows together. “You mean... they aren't already broken up?”

“Nope.”

“Oh. Huh. I figured since El hasn't talked about him for weeks...”

“Yeah, I don't know.”

“Why's Mike breaking up with her?”

“He's... not interested in her like that.” He paused then lowered his voice. “Are you and Nancy doing okay?”

Jonathan raised an eyebrow. “Why do you ask?”

“I don't know. You guys just seemed to be arguing a lot at dinner.”

“We weren't really arguing.”

“Okay, yeah, but you know what I mean.”

Clasping his hands together, Jonathan turned around on his bed and faced his brother. “It's nice that you're thinking of us, but you really don't have to worry. I'm sure you have other things to think about.”

“I know.” He lifted a shoulder. “But you're always there for me when I need you. I just want to be there for you if you ever need someone to talk to.”

Jonathan's face softened. “That's really nice of you, Will. I appreciate it a lot. I do.” He gave Will a reassuring smile. “Really, Will. You don't have to worry about it; we're fine.”

“Okay. That's good.”

Sighing, Jonathan lowered his voice. “And you and Mike? How are you guys doing?”

“What do you mean?”

“Are you two together? I mean, he seems pretty interested.”

This turn of conversation threw him off. Seems pretty interested? Who? Mike? What did that even mean? And why would he ask if they're together? He literally just told Jonathan that Mike is breaking up with El. Why would he think...

Before he could overthink it, Will shook his head. “We're not together, no.”

“Does he know that?”

“What are you talking about?”

Jonathan shrugged. “Listen. I have a pretty good sense of when someone's hiding something, and he's barely hiding it at all.” When Will gaped at him – honestly, what else was Will supposed to do – Jonathan put his hand on his shoulder. “I know the last time we talked about it, I wasn't too happy with him. Especially after what he said to you. But if it makes you happy, I'll support whatever you decide.”

“I really don't know what you're talking about. We're not together.”

“I know, I know. All I mean is that if you decide to start something, I'll support you.”

This whole conversation confused him. Why was Jonathan talking about his relationship with Mike all of a sudden? Did he know something? All he'd told Jonathan in relation to him and Mike was that he had a conversation with Mike in the summer and had forgiven him. He hadn't even told Jonathan that Mike and him had ever kissed. As far as he knew, Jonathan only thought Will was the one who liked Mike. Not the other way around.

“Does El know?”

Will's eyebrows drew together. “Know what exactly?”

“About you and Mike?”

“She knows I'm gay. Other than that, I have no idea what she knows.” He examined his brother's expression. “How much do _you_ know?”

He lifted a shoulder. “Just what you told me, and just what I've seen.”

Before Will could ask what he meant by how much he's seen, there was a knock on the door. Nancy opened it and smiled at them. “I discussed Christmas break with your mom,” she said. “Looks like we've got the go ahead.”

“Sounds good.” Jonathan got to his feet and motioned for Will to leave, jerking his thumb towards the door.

Will hopped up and started out the door, Nancy moving past him. As she went inside, Will grabbed his brother by the arm and pulled him to the doorway. His voice lowered even more to barely a whisper. “You won't tell anyone, right? I don't know if Nancy knows anything, and most people only know about me, not Mike.”

Jonathan frowned. “Of course not. I would never tell anyone.”

“Thank you.”

“It's okay.” He squeezed Will's shoulder before turning around into his room and closing the door. Taking a breath, Will headed down the hall to his room, stopping in front of the slightly-open door and listening to what Mike and El were saying. Nothing. They weren't saying anything at all. Will lifted his hand to the door, paused, then knocked on it.

“Yes?” El called.

Will stepped inside the room. El sat by the foot of Will's bed, flipping through a magazine; Mike sat by the headboard, wringing his hands together. Both of them seemed unphased, their expressions blank. Taking a seat on the side of his bed, Will glanced between them. He couldn't tell what either of them were feeling, whether or not the break-up affected them. Judging by their expressions, it seemed like they hadn't even broken up at all.

Tossing the magazine onto the nightstand, El hopped off the bed. “I'm going to sleep.” She grabbed a pair of pajamas from the dresser and left the room.

Will looked over at Mike. Mike kept his eyes down, examining his fingernails. “How'd it go?” Will asked him.

Barely glancing up, Mike hummed. “Pretty well, actually.”

“Really?”

He shrugged. “Yep.”

“How did El take it?”

Another shrug. “Not bad, actually. I think she wanted to break up with me anyways.”

“Oh.”

“I think she's bored with me.”

Will held in a laugh. “Why do you say that?”

“Well, she just said she thinks of me as a brother or friend or something like that.” He leaned his back against the headboard. “You know, it's sort of relieving.”

“That it was mutual?”

“Well, that, and the fact that I don't have to pretend with her anymore. We can just be friends now.” He looked over at Will with a smile. “I should thank you for that.”

Will furrowed his eyebrows. “Why?”

“If it wasn't for you, I'm not sure I would have realized what I was doing until it was too late. I would probably still be pretending.”

“I'm glad it's going well for you.”

“Yeah.” He tilted his head to the side. “Are things going well with you? I know El mentioned some kids picking on her.”

Will groaned. “Yeah, those jerks. They're just a bunch of popular rich kids. I told her to just ignore them.”

“What about you? They're not messing with you, are they?”

He shook his head. “I don't think they even know I exist.”

“So things are alright for you?”

“So far.” Mike's eyes stayed on him, so he stared down at the bedsheets. “You never mentioned you were skipping class before.”

A groan escaped Mike's lips. “Because it's stupid.”

“What is?”

“Everything. Gym class sucks, high school sucks, and everyone sucks. I hate it.”

“Oh.” Will wasn't sure what to say. Mike never used to hate school this much. Yes, the bullies he hated, and yes, he always hated gym class, same with the rest of the party. But he still liked school in general. At least, he used to. “Well... why?”

“Why does everything suck? Because I'm alone. I literally know no one in my gym class. The only class I have with Dustin and Lucas is biology and lunch.”

“What about Max?”

“She's in my math class, but she barely talks. All she does is sit in the back listening to music the whole time.”

“I mean, you can't really blame her.”

Mike rolled his eyes. “It's still annoying.”

“Why didn't you say anything about this before? Whenever we talked, you said everything was fine.”

“I didn't want to worry you.”

“How are Dustin and Lucas doing then? Are they skipping class, too?”

“They're both fine.”

Taking a breath, Will moved from where he was sitting on the edge of the bed to sit beside Mike. “What about joining a club? Weren't you guys planning on finding something to join?”

Mike sighed. “That doesn't help gym class.”

“You might make new friends.”

“Doubtful.”

“I'm sure it'll get better.”

“I wish you were there with me.”

Will met his gaze. “I know. It's not easy for me either.”

“I know it sounds dumb, but it's a lot harder than I was expecting. Nothing's the same anymore.”

The edge in his voice made Will's stomach churn. He couldn't help the guilt boiling up inside. If he hadn't agreed to move, Mike wouldn't be in this position. This was his fault.

“Will?”

He looked up at Mike. At the sadness in his eyes.

“I...” Mike's voice wavered. “I _really_ missed you.”

Will's heart sank. “I missed you, too.”

Once El returned to the room, they all got ready for bed, showering and changing into their pajamas. The night went smoothly, neither Will nor El awakening in fright from a nightmare. The next day, while El and Mike were watching a movie on the TV and Joyce was at work, Will talked with Jonathan and Nancy in the kitchen about their plans for Christmas break. According to Nancy, El would sleep in her room, Jonathan taking the basement, and Will would sleep in Mike's room. The plan was to arrive on the twenty-third and leave the morning of the twenty-sixth. Which meant three nights sleeping in Mike's room. Just the two of them. The thought of it made him both nervous and excited.

After discussing Christmas break, Will went to the living room and plopped himself down on the couch beside Mike.

Mike looked over at him. “What were you talking about?”

“Hm?”

“With Nancy and Jonathan.”

“Oh.” He shrugged. “Nothing, really. Just figuring out our plans for Christmas.”

Mike's face lit up. “You're coming over, right?”

“Far as I know. My mom's cool with it.”

“Awesome! I've been working on a campaign we can play then. And also, I think I mentioned this to El, but we were thinking of all going ice skating when you guys come over since she's never done it before.”

“Sounds fun.”

“Do you all know how to ice skate?” El asked them, her eyes still on the TV.

“I'm okay,” Mike said then nudged Will's shoulder. “You're not bad either once you adjust to it.”

“Mhm.” Will couldn't help but wonder if anyone else noticed his and Mike's relationship other than Jonathan. His brother was pretty observant, that's for sure, but now that Will thought about it, there were various moments in which his friends uttered phrases with no other meaning than them thinking there was more than just platonic feelings on Mike's side. The more he thought about it, the more he wondered, had his friends known all along?

Mike knocked his knee against Will's. Shaking away his thoughts, Will looked at him. “What's with you?” Mike asked.

“What?”

“You're acting weird.”

Will forced a laugh. “No, I'm not.” God, that sounded stupid.

Eyeing him, Mike adjusted himself on the couch so he was facing Will. “Yes, you're acting funny.” He leaned forward and before Will could move away, his mouth was pressed to Will's ear. His voice hummed, “Is it because of what I did during dinner yesterday?”

A chill went down Will's spine. Mike leaned back against the couch cushion, the side of his mouth pulling up in a smirk. They held eye contact until Mike hopped to his feet. “I'm going to the bathroom.” He kicked the edge of Will's foot lightly before striding over to the bathroom.

Will turned to El. “How are things going with you and Mike?”

Her eyes stayed glued to the TV. “We broke up.”

He paused, thinking about how to word this in order for it not to sound like he already knew. “Are... are you okay about it?”

“Yes. I don't like him like a boyfriend anymore, and I want to do other things.”

“Oh... um, what exactly... how did you... break up?” When the words left his mouth, all he wanted to do was punch himself in the face for sounding like such an idiot.

El's forehead creased. “How?”

“I mean, what exactly did he say?”

“He said it's not working, and I agreed with him.”

From that, it seemed like Mike hadn't told her too much. If he'd told her the whole story, Will was sure El would mention it.

After a minute, Will got up from the couch and went to the bathroom door. He pressed his ear to it, hearing the faucet going. Sucking in a breath, he shook his hands out, lifted one to the door, and tapped his knuckles against it. “Mike,” he whispered, “can we-”

The door swung open. Before he could do anything, Mike grabbed him by the front of his shirt and pulled him inside, closing the door behind them. His breath hitched. They stared at each other for a moment, neither one of them daring to speak. The space between them burned like a sweltering fire. It took everything in Will to keep his eyes locked with Mike's and not look down at Mike's lips.

Voice soft, Mike stepped forward, pressing their chests against each other. “Fancy seeing you here.”

He can barely breathe. “Yeah, uh... thanks.”

Mike cracked a smile. Heart pounding, Will's gaze followed Mike as he lifted his hand. Mike's hand trailed down his cheek, sending tingles down Will's spine. Trailing over his jaw. Down his neck. Their faces drew closer, and just as Mike was about to close the gap, Will shot his hand up between them, pushing it against Mike's face. “Ow!”

“Oh.” Will froze. “Um... sorry.” Hand still pressed over Mike's face, he could feel Mike let out a breath against his palm. He dropped his hand. “I actually... I wanted to ask what you told Eleven. Just so I know.”

With a frown, Mike furrowed his eyebrows. “What do you mean? We broke up.”

“Yeah, just... what exactly did you say to her was the reason?”

“For breaking up?”

Will nodded.

Shrugging, Mike took a step back and looked away. “Just that we aren't working out being more than friends. Then she started saying she completely agreed and blah, blah, blah. Why's it matter?”

His face grew red. “Sorry, I was only asking 'cause I wanted to know if there's anything I shouldn't mention to El. Like, I don't know, everything that happened between us.”

Mike's face softened. “Of course. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be rude about it... I – I guess the break-up's still a bit fresh, even though it was mutual or whatever... it's still sort of hard for me.” He shook his head. “But anyways, no, I didn't tell her about us. I wasn't sure if I should... should I have? I can if you want me to.”

Will stuffed his hands in his pockets. “Um... I'm not sure.”

“Do you think it will hurt her more if we told her than if we don't?” Mike asked, rubbing his arms. “I mean, is there really a reason we have to? You know, since _we're_ not even, like, _together_ or anything.” He met Will's eyes. “...right?”

An uncomfortable amount of butterflies fluttered in his stomach. Mike wasn't wrong; he knew that. It was Will who decided to stay only friends, even though he regretted that decision every time his mind wandered to Mike. The way his lips had felt against his when they'd kissed. The thought made his cheeks burn. Clearing his throat, he gave Mike a curt nod. “Yes. Right.”

No response from Mike. Will examined his expression but couldn't pinpoint what exactly it was. Letting out an unsteady breath, he straightened up. “Do you – do you want to go check out the Rollerlux around the corner? It's really cool; you'll love it.”

Mike met his eyes. “Yeah. Awesome.” He slung an arm around Will's shoulders, and they left the bathroom.

When they went into the living room, Will gestured to El. “We're going to the Rollerlux for a bit. Want to come with?”

El glanced up but shook her head. “No. Have fun.” She looked back at the TV.

While Mike put on his jacket, Will walked over to El. “Are you sure?”

“Yes. I'm fine here.”

“Okay. We'll be back in a couple hours.” He walked back over to Mike who handed him his jacket. Stuffing some cash into his pockets, he turned towards the kitchen. “Hey, Jonathan,” he called, “Mike and I are going to the arcade, so just tell Mom if we're not back when she gets home.”

“Okay,” Jonathan called back. “Be careful.”

“Yep.” After putting on their shoes, Will and Mike headed out the door. As they walked down the street, Mike surveyed the buildings they passed, pointing out the shops he thought looked cool and wanted to check out later. Will couldn't help but smile at his excitement.

They stepped into the Rollerlux Arcade and were met by the flashing lights and dinging machines of the arcade games, music booming over the speakers. “Woah...” Mike murmured.

Letting out a laugh, Will grabbed his arm. “Come on.” He lead him through the rows of games, dodging people dashing past. “What do you want to play first?”

Mike's gaze fell over all the games. “This place is wicked.”

Will couldn't keep the smile off his face. “It is, isn't it?”

The two of them went from game to game, ones they've played previously and ones they never even knew existed. They played for about an hour, rushing around the aisles and laughing, until all Will had in his pockets was a couple of pennies and a stick of gum.

“Do you want to roller skate for a bit?” Mike suggested.

“I'm all out of money, and it's a couple bucks to rent skates.”

“No worries.” Mike pulled two twenty dollar bills out of his pocket. “I've got us covered.”

Will smiled. “Where'd you get all that money?”

“My mom. She's been acting extra nice to me for some reason.” Mike wrapped his arm around Will's shoulders, and they went over to the counter to rent skates. Will rang the service bell while Mike gestured towards the food menu on the counter. “Want something to eat, too?”

“Oh, you don't-”

“It's my treat. Come on.” He flashed Will a grin, knocking their elbows together.

From the back room, a boy with a black mohawk came out and up to the counter. Daniel. “Hey, Byers,” he said, giving Will a smile. He nodded to Mike. “Who's your friend?”

Will smiled back. “Hey. Um... This is Mike. He's a friend from my old school.”

Daniel reached a hand over the counter, extending it to Mike. Glancing at Will, Mike frowned. Will raised an eyebrow at him. Letting out a whistle, Daniel pulled his hand back. “Alrighty. So...” He avoided Mike's eye and looked to Will instead. “What can I do for you today? Skates? Food?”

“We'll take both,” Mike said.

“Shoe sizes?”

“Eleven.”

“Nine.”

“Alright.” Daniel went to the roller skate slots and pulled out two pairs, handing them to Mike and Will. “Here you go. What food did you want?”

“Can I get nachos and a water?” Will said and glanced over at Mike. “And...”

Rubbing his neck, Mike leaned against the counter. “And I'll have nachos, too. And a coke.”

Daniel rung up the order. “Alright. That'll be seven seventy-five.” Mike handed the money to Daniel. “I can bring your food out to you if you want to grab a table.”

While Daniel got their food and drinks, Mike and Will went over to a table by the rink to put on their skates. Mike took a glance around the place. “How often do you come here?” he asks Will.

“Um, every once in a while I guess. El doesn't really care much for it, but she likes the roller skating. Even though we both suck.”

They shared a laugh. Once their skates were on, they got out onto the rink, both fairly unsteady. They took a lap around, in which Mike fell three times, Will laughing each time.

“Hey, the last time I skated was when I was nine,” Mike said when he got back to his feet after the third fall, rolling his eyes but smiling when Will snickered.

“No wonder you skip gym class.”

“Hey!” Mike nudged him playfully, but threw himself off balance and ended up falling to the ground again. Will cackled, skating around to watch Mike struggle to get up, and reached a hand out to help him. Smirking, Mike grabbed his arm and pulled him down, the skates flinging out from under Will and sending him sprawling on top of Mike. He sat up, hovering over Mike, his knees digging into Mike's thighs. They both exchanged looks and burst into laughter.

“Guess we both suck at this,” Will said.

“Yep. Looks like it.”

“Oy, Byers!” At the sound of Daniel's voice, Will pushed himself off of Mike and looked to where Daniel peered at them over the edge of the rink, balancing a platter of food in his hand. “You two have a table?”

“Oh, yeah.” Will got to his feet, brushing himself off and helping Mike up. They skated out of the rink and over to the table.

As they took off their skates, Daniel set the food down. “Have a good break, Byers. See you at school.” He flashed Will a smile and winked at him.

“You, too.” Heat rose up his neck, and he looked away. “See you.”

Daniel chuckled and left for the counter, Mike watching as he walked away. Keeping his eyes down, Will grabbed his nachos and water, popping a nacho in his mouth. He could feel Mike's eyes shift from Daniel to him. “So,” Mike said, taking a sip of his coke, “who was that guy?”

“Hm?”

“That guy who gave us our food. He seems... friendly.”

Will glanced up at him. “Oh, him. Yeah... he's just some guy from school.”

“One of your friends?”

Chuckling, Will wiped his hands on a napkin and shook his head. “Friends? I don't have friends.”

Mike narrowed his eyes. “What?”

“No, I just mean, I don't really have any friends at school. El and I usually stick together when we can.” He took a sip of water. “But there are some people in my art class who are nice.”

“Is that guy one of them?” There was an edge in his voice that unnerved Will.

Looking at Mike, Will noticed his jaw tensed. Will sighed. “His name's Daniel... and yes, he's in my art class.” He watched Mike closely. “He's a nice guy; you'd like him.”

“So are you friends or not?”

“We don't hang out or anything. He's just a decent guy. That's all.” Will gave him a hard look.

Mike's face softened, and he shrugged. “Okay, that's cool. I'm glad people here are nice to you.” He tapped his knuckle on the table. “How's El doing? I mean, she said she's been doing well and everything other than those bullies, but I just want to make sure. I mean, you guys have gotten pretty close, right? So... is she holding up alright?”

Will gave him a smile. “Yeah, she's doing well. She's still coping with losing Hopper and her powers and all that, but I'd say she's hanging in there. School can be a bit rough, but Jonathan and I have been trying to help her as much as we can. But she's tough, of course. She's pretty good at handling things on her own.”

“That's good.” Looking down, he shook his head. “I do love her, you know. Maybe not in a romantic way or whatever, but I really, _really_ care about her.”

Will reached out his hand and set it on Mike's. “I know.”

“And I know lying to her for so long wasn't right... but for the longest time, I didn't think I was lying at all. I really thought that that's what being in love was supposed to feel like.”

Squeezing his hand, he met Mike's eyes. “I understand. And I don't want you guys to stop being friends or anything like that, just so you know.”

A smile formed on Mike's lips. “Yeah, of course.”

They finished their food, played a couple more games before they returned home. The rest of the break was chill, Will, Mike, and El going to the arcade and watching movies for the next two days that Mike and Nancy were there. Once the break ended, and they got back to the groove of things, that's when everything started to go downhill.


	5. The Call

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will receives a call from Mike.

“Are you okay?” El watches Will from where she's sitting at the desk in their room, radio in her hand.

He lifts himself away from the door. “I don't know,” he murmurs, going over in his head what his mom just told him. His father? _Here?_ There's a stitch in his side, digging into him like a knife. He hasn't seen his father in years. As far as he knew, his father didn't even care to see him at all. Why does he want to see him now?

Moving towards his bed, he halts, catching himself on the dresser. The floor sways beneath his feet. Grasping the edge of the dresser to keep himself steady, he closes his eyes and takes a breath in, then out. In then out.

“What's wrong?” El asks, putting away the radio and taking a step towards Will.

Breath unsteady, he shakes his head, rubbing his eyes with the back of his hand. “Nothing... nothing.”

“Are you sure?”

“Will?” Jonathan's voice calls from the hallway, making Will and El look to the door. “Will?”

He meets El's eyes; she gives him a shrug.

“Will!” Jonathan calls again. Opening the door, Will peers down the hall to see Jonathan standing with the phone in his hand. Jonathan waves at him. “You've got a call.”

Will furrows his eyebrows, glancing at the time on his watch. Almost ten. His friends usually never call this late on school nights. Shutting the door, he walks over to his brother and in a hushed voice, asks him, “Who is it?”

Jonathan hands him the phone. “It's Mike.” He pats him on the shoulder before going to his room.

_Mike_. Will stares at the phone in his hand for a moment. _Mike is calling him_. His stomach is in knots as he brings the phone to his ear. “Hello?”

“Hey, Will,” Mike says, making Will's breath hitch. “It's Mike.”

His vocal chords struggle to make a sound. “H – how are you? What's up?”

“I'm fine. How have you been?”

God, this is so awkward. What the hell is he supposed to say? Swallowing, he leans against the wall and whispers, “I'm okay.”

“It's been a while.”

“Yeah... yeah, it has.” His hand trembles. “Um... I know we haven't really... talked. Since what happened. I've just... with everything going on, I haven't really been able to...” If he could punch himself in the face right now, he would.

“It's fine. Really.” Mike sighs. “I actually called about your birthday.”

“Oh... what about it?”

“I can't come over,” Mike explains, a hitch in his breath audible from the other end. “Nancy's busy with some sort of research or whatever. She can't drive me.”

“Oh.” He clutches the phone to keep from dropping it. “That's... that's okay,” he says, trying to hide the disappointment in his voice. “Actually, it might be better that way. My – my dad... he's coming over for my birthday for some reason.”

“Your dad?”

“Yeah, I don't know why.”

There's a pause before Mike clears his throat. “I really do wish I could. Come over. But my mom won't even let me take a bus by myself.”

“It's fine, Mike, really,” he insists. “We can still see each other this summer.”

“Yeah, of course.”

After a beat of silence, Will goes on, “Dustin said you've been going to that D&D club he's in. The Hellfire Club. How is it?”

“Oh, that... yeah, I don't know if I'm gonna keep hanging around with them much more.”

“Why not?”

“I don't know... it's just not the same. And some weird shit is happening with them.”

“Weird shit?”

“Yeah, just... people are blaming them for a lot of bad stuff that's happening here... I never should have joined it in the first place. I didn't even want to.”

“Mike, I told you it was fine. You don't have to feel bad about joining it.”

“It's not just that... none of it feels the same. Not without you.”

Will pauses, listening to Mike's breathing. Closing his eyes, a sigh escapes his lips. “I'm sorry I haven't been there for you after what happened,” he says, his voice weak. He fidgets with the phone cord. “I've just had a lot on my mind, and with everything happening here, I haven't had the chance to call. ”

“No, Will, it's not-” Mike sucks in a breath. “You don't have to feel bad about any of it. It was just an accident anyways. I'm fine now.”

“Yeah... yeah, I know.” He shuts his eyes, letting out a sigh. His mind flashes back to that day two and a half months ago when he got the call. His friends' panicked voices. His own panicked reaction. Yet another thing to add to his nightmares. “But it still scared me when Dustin called. I didn't know what to think.”

It takes a moment for Mike to answer. “I know. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to ruin things for you there.”

“That's not what I meant-”

“No, really. I am sorry. You shouldn't have to worry about me.” There was a pause. Whispering on the other end before Mike let out a huff. “You don't have to waste your time on me anymore.”

“Mike-”

The line goes quiet.


	6. Nightmare

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After his call with Mike, Will goes to bed and has a nightmare.

Ears ringing, Will stares at the phone in his hand. _You don't have to waste your time on me anymore_. After months of not speaking, this is what he's met with? No. He shakes his head. Of _course_ this happened. He should have expected it. He deserves it.

A lump lodged in his throat, he clutches the phone until his knuckles burn white. “You stupid idiot,” he hisses, the floor spinning beneath his feet. “You. Stupid. _Idiot_.” This is all his fault. He did this. If he had just went to see Mike after he found out what happened, then he wouldn't be in this situation right now. If he hadn't been such an _idiot_ then none of this would've happened. He ruined everything. Roaring, he slams the phone into the wall. Once. Twice. Another time, and another, and another, until his hand is throbbing and his stomach is in knots and he can't see anything but white flashing around him.

A hand comes down on his shoulder, and he whips around, entire body flinching. Jonathan takes a step back, holding his hands up in front of him. “What's going on?” His forehead is creased and mouth etched in a frown.

The smell of burnt wood wafts in Will's nose. Blinking hard, he gapes at the phone in his hand. It's completely charred, all the way up the wire. Even the wall surrounding it is covered in black soot.

“What happened, Will?” Jonathan asks in a low voice, which Will can't tell if it's because he doesn't want their mom to hear or because he's afraid of what Will might do if he talks too loud.

Will swallows, letting the phone drop out of his hand and bang against the wall. “It's – it's nothing,” he chokes, taking a step back.

“Will-” Jonathan lifts a hand to his shoulder, and the contact sends a fury through Will.

He jerks away from Jonathan. “I said it's nothing!” Spinning around, he storms to his bedroom and slams the door shut, ignoring El as she jolts up in her bed. He collapses in his own bed, burying his face in his pillow.

“Will?” El whispers, making him bury his face even deeper in his pillow. Blood pounds in his ears; he can barely hear her speaking.

“I don't want to talk about it,” he mumbles and presses his hands to his ears to block out any noise, but it doesn't block out the one noise bothering him the most: the voice in his head.

After what feels like hours of lying with his face buried in his pillow, the world around him falls away as he's transported through darkness and plummets through nightmare after nightmare. Running, screaming, fleeing from the demogorgon. The Mind Flayer. At one point, he's walking up the stairwell. He reaches their apartment floor and starts down the hall, humming a song to himself. As he turns the corner, he spots a man, his face a blur, standing at the end of the hallway near their apartment door, blood covering his clothes. Will's heart shoots into his throat. The light flickers above them then bursts, leaving Will in complete darkness. He wants to scream, his whole body frozen. Breath quickening, he focuses on the light that burst, the electricity. It pops back on, light flooding back into the hallway. Will's breath slows, but his eyes fall back to the end of the hallway. The man is no longer there. Will rushes into the apartment, shutting the door the second he gets inside. He lets out a breath, trying to convince himself that what he saw was all in his head. “Hey,” a voice says behind him, making him flinch. He spins around to see Mike standing with his arms crossed, glaring at Will. “What are you doing?”

“What?”

“Why are you doing this?”

“Doing what?” But Mike doesn't answer. Instead, a flurry of grey shadow bursts around them and swallows him up. Will screams, grasping for Mike, but he's gone. The shadow turns on him, and he's choking it in, standing on the field of Hawkins Middle School. It's everywhere. He feels it everywhere. Every inch of him, inside and out. Lurching forward, he shrieks at it to get out of him, to stay away. To leave him alone.

A scream that isn't his own shatters into his nightmare, and he jolts awake, peering around the room. For a moment, he thinks the scream was only a part of his dream, but he notices El sitting up by the end of her bed, eyes wide. It isn't a rare sight. For the past few weeks, Will awoke in the middle of the night to find El either having a nightmare or awake from one. Sometimes, he even found her standing in the middle of the room, staring into space.

“El?” he whispers. She keeps still. “Eleven?”

When she doesn't move, he clears his throat and raises his voice. “Eleven.”

She spins around, gaping at Will. “Huh?”

“I think you were having a nightmare.”

“Oh.” Rubbing her eyes, she shifts up to her headboard. “Did I sleepwalk again?”

“Not that I noticed. You were only sitting up.”

“Did I wake you?”

He shakes his head. “I had a nightmare, too.”

“What time is it?”

He squints at his watch. “Three in the morning. We should probably go back to bed. Get some sleep before tomorrow.”

“The big day.”

He chuckles. “Yep. The big day. Goodnight, El.”

“Goodnight, Will.”


	7. Total Badasses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> El helps Will with a change in appearance. Jonathan and Joyce have an argument.

The moment Will opens his eyes, he's met with the sight of El staring down at him. His whole body flinches. “What-”

Grinning, El grabs his arms and pulls him to his feet. “Come on! I have an idea!” She yanks him out through the hall and into the bathroom.

“What are you doing?” Will asks as she rummages through the drawer beneath the sink.

She hops back up wielding a pair of scissors. Will looks at her warily. “Haircut,” she explains.

“Who? What?”

Rolling her eyes, she shuts the door and turns on the faucet. Will jerks back when she reaches her hand for his hair. She eyes him. “We're supposed to be changing things up. That's what you said.”

“I never said you could cut my hair!”

“So you don't want to change it up?”

“Not-” Will stares at himself in the mirror. His same old boring self. He hasn't changed much for most of his life. Same haircut. Same clothing style. He's taller, that's for sure, but other than that, it's like he's still that twelve year old kid who got abducted in his shed almost three years ago.

He looks back at El who's holding up the scissors and watching him eagerly. Taking another glance at himself in the mirror, he lets out a sigh. “Okay, fine. But-” He holds up a hand when El reaches for his hair again. “First, what exactly are you planning on doing?”

“It's a surprise.”

“That's not very comforting.”

She huffs, slumping her shoulders. “Do you trust me?”

“That's not the problem here.”

“Will.”

“Okay, fine. Just don't make me look like an idiot.”

Letting out a laugh, she gives a shake of her head and moves him to lean over the sink. “I won't.” She goes to work on his hair, chopping off a chunk from the side.

“I swear, if you make me look stupid, I'm never leaving this house again.”

“I said I won't.”

“Do you even know what you're doing?”

“Mhm. I saw it in a magazine.”

“Saw _what_ in a magazine?”

“The haircut.”

“So, you don't know what you're doing.”

“ _Will_.”

“Okay, fine. I'll shut up.”

After a few minutes of snipping away at his hair, El grabs the electric razor from the counter, plugs it in, and brings it to the side of his head. Will jerks back. “Woah, what are you doing with that?”

“Shaving it.”

“Shaving _what_?”

“The sides.” When Will gives her a sheepish look, she rolls her eyes and presses her hand to the back of his head, pushing him back down to the sink. “You said I could do it, so let me.”

“What are we doing with your hair? Do I get to cut it?”

“Just wait until I'm done with yours.”

“Okay, okay. Just hurry up. We can't be late for school.”

After a moment, sides of his head shaved, El turns on the faucet and runs water through his hair until its soaked. Then she hands him a towel which he dries his hair with. While he's drying off his hair and El's looking at hers in the mirror, the shouts of Jonathan echo from the front of the apartment. “Are you kidding me? Why didn't you tell me?”

Frowning, Will listens closely, but isn't able to make out everything being said. He hears his brother and mother's voices, both tense. “I can't believe you,” Jonathan yells. “After what he did when we thought Will _died_? You're still letting him near him?”

“I don't have time for this, Jonathan,” Joyce says. “It's good for you boys to have your father in your lives.”

“No! No, it's not! Not when he's a complete asshole! You can't keep running back to him when you're lonely and ruining our lives.”

“Jonathan-”

“No, Mom! Not this time. I'm not letting you do this to him. He's been through enough.”

“Why don't we talk about this later, okay? I need to get to work.” Footsteps echo in the hallway, and there's a knock on the bathroom door.

“In the middle of something,” Will calls.

“Oh, okay – wait, is that the razor?”

Will shoots El a look, and she turns off the razor. He pauses, takes a breath, and opens the door. Joyce's eyes fall on Will and El. “Oh my – what's happened to your hair?”

Will and El exchange looks. Putting on a smile, El leans forward. “Makeover.”

Blinking, Joyce looks back-and-forth between them. “Okay, well, if you're happy with it... well, why don't you two wash up and get ready for school?” She gives them a quick smile and starts to leave.

“Oh, Mom,” Will says, and she turns back around. He scratches his neck. “Um... Mike called yesterday, and he said he and Nancy can't come this weekend.”

Brows furrowed, Joyce frowns. “Oh. How come?”

He shrugs. “Nancy's busy, so she can't drive them, and Mrs. Wheeler doesn't want Mike to come by himself either.”

“I'm sorry.” Joyce squeezes his shoulder. “I know how much you were looking forward to seeing him.” She pauses before her face lights up. “Why don't you invite some of your new friends? You said you had a friend from school. Why don't you invite them?”

“Oh... I don't know.”

“Just ask them. Even if they can't come, I'm sure they'll appreciate the invitation.” She gives him a smile, so he shrugs. “And don't forget to figure out the names of those kids who are picking on you. I need to call them.”

“I know, I know.”

She ruffles his hair. “Are you feeling okay?”

Rolling his eyes, he grumbles, “Yes, Mom.”

“Okay, okay. Just making sure. You two, have a good day at school.”

They mumble yes. Once she leaves, El looks to Will. “Mike isn't coming?”

Tossing the towel in the hamper, Will sighs. “Yeah. Sorry, I should've told you last night.”

She doesn't answer, instead looking to the mirror, biting her lip as she brushes her hands through her hair. Will clears his throat. “I don't think we have time to do anything with your hair right now, but maybe after school?”

She nods. “Okay.” Putting away the razor and scissors, El cleans up the hair in the sink. “Who were your mom and Jonathan talking about?”

Frowning, Will brushes stray hairs off his pajama shirt. “My dad.”

“You're not happy?”

Great question. He should be happy, shouldn't he? I mean, he's seeing his dad, right? Most people should be happy to see their dad. Right?

With no answer from Will, El says, “He's a bad man?”

Will grabs his toothbrush and squirts toothpaste on it. “I don't like to think anyone's really bad, deep down.” He hands El the tube of toothpaste. She takes it, puts some on her toothbrush, and the two of them brush their teeth in silence. Once their done, and they finish cleaning up the bathroom, they get ready for school, gathering their school supplies and getting dressed in their new outfits: Will in an old Joy Division shirt he got from Jonathan, denim vest from the thrift store, and sunglasses; El in a bright red shirt, jeans, a bandana in her hair and fingerless gloves on her hands, and sunglasses.

Looking at themselves in the mirror, they both smile. “Total badasses,” El says.

Will lets out a laugh. “Totally.”

They gather their backpacks and go to the kitchen to eat breakfast. Jonathan is putting scrambled eggs on his plate by the stove as they take a seat at the table. “Hey, Will, how are you doing?” he says, his back to them. “I just wanted to know after yester – what happened to you?”

Jonathan stares at Will and El, taken aback. Will lowers his head. “Does it look bad?”

Blinking, Jonathan shakes his head and lets out a laugh. “Uh...no. Actually, it looks pretty cool. I was just wondering why the sudden change. And when did you get a haircut?”

“We want to change things up,” El explains.

“Well, you've succeeded in that.”

Will gestures to his hair. “El cut it today.”

Chuckling, Jonathan scrunches his nose. “Really? Just now? Is that what you were doing in the bathroom?”

Spreading butter on a slice of toast, Will lifts a shoulder. “It was El's idea.”

“What's with the sunglasses?”

El shovels her scrambled eggs in her mouth. “They're bitchin'.”

Jonathan chuckles. “Sure.”

“We got them from a thrift store,” Will explains.

“Hm. Well, they look nice.” While Will and El eat their breakfast, Jonathan lowers his fork. “Mom said she'll get a new phone after work.”

El raises an eyebrow, glancing over to the charred phone on the wall. Keeping his eyes on his plate, Will murmurs, “Did she ask what happened?”

“Of course she did. All I told her was that I scared you when you were on the phone.”

Will scrunches up his face, but Jonathan waves his hand. “Don't worry. Anyways, Nancy told me last night that she and Mike can't make it to your birthday. Is that what Mike told you?”

Will takes a bite of his toast. “Mhm.”

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah, it's not that important anyways.”

He can feel Jonathan's eyes on him. Humming, Jonathan pokes his eggs with a fork. “Did Mom tell you about Dad?”

Will pauses his chewing. “Last night.”

“I can't believe he's coming here,” Jonathan hisses. ”After everything he did, I can't believe she would let him come back.”

“It's just for the weekend.”

“Yeah, but still. He shouldn't come at all.”

“Maybe he won't be so bad this time.”

Jonathan frowns. “You don't know the half of it, Will. He's not a good guy, and Mom never should have let him come here.”

“She said he wanted to see us.”

“Bullshit. He's probably looking for money.” Jaw tense, Jonathan stands up. “Come on. Don't want to be late.” He puts his plate in the sink, grabs his bag, and marches to the door. Will and El rush to finish what they can of their breakfast and hurry after Jonathan.


	8. Fighting Back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will and El set their plan to get back at the bullies in motion.

As their car pulls into the school parking lot, Will checks his watch to make sure they're not running late. Ten minutes until the first bell rings. His stomach aches. Maybe they should have thought this through more. There are a billion things that could go wrong.

“What's Nancy busy with?” El asks as she gets out of the car. Grabbing his backpack and making sure he has the note he wrote for Daniel in his pocket, Will follows her out.

Jonathan shuts the car door and locks it. “What do you mean?”

“Will said Nancy's busy, so she can't come to his birthday.”

“Oh, right. She's doing research for a newspaper article. Not sure what it's about.”

The three of them start towards the school, Will running his fingers through his freshly-cut hair and trying to keep focused on the plan. Get the paint, talk to Daniel, make an excuse to his teacher, get to the stairwell. He repeats the steps over in his head.

El opens the door to the school and goes inside, but before Will can follow her, Jonathan takes him by the arm and pulls him aside. “Hey, can we talk?”

Clutching onto his backpack straps, Will frowns at his brother. “What about?”

“What was that last night? With the phone?”

Heat rises to his cheeks. Looking to the ground, he shakes his head. “I shouldn't have yelled at you. I'm sorry.”

“It's okay. I just want to know what was going on. Is it because Mike can't come over?”

Will lets out a harsh breath. “No.”

“Then what?”

When Will lowers his head, Jonathan sighs. “I know these past few months have been tough. Believe me, it hasn't been a great time for me either. But I just... I wish you would talk to me, Will. You never told me what happened with you and Mike, and I know it's none of my business, but I'm worried.”

He's tempted to explain the situation to Jonathan, but one glance at his watch brings him back to reality. “Sorry, I can't right now. I have to get to class.” He grabs the door handle but stops and turns back to Jonathan. “When the first bell rings, you might want to get your camera ready and head to the back stairwell in the C wing.”

Jonathan furrows his brows. “What for?”

“You'll see.” He flashes his brother a smile before spinning around and running after El.

Inside the building, he finds her waiting by the entrance, leaning against the wall with her arms crossed. “What if Daniel doesn't say it?” she asks, hopping away from the wall.

They head down the hallway. “The announcement?”

“Yeah.”

Will takes his sunglasses off. “Let's hope he does.” The two of them go into the stairwell, moving to the side so as not to get in the way of everyone walking past. Leaning close to El, Will keeps his voice low. “Okay, so tell your teacher you need to go to the nurse and head right to the back stairwell, but just make sure you take these stairs up to the second floor so those jerks don't see you. Oh, and you remembered the pliers, right?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, good. I'll get the paint and give Daniel the paper with what he should say.”

“And we dump it right after he says it?”

He nods.

“Okay. Got it.”

Taking a breath, he checks his watch. Six minutes. “We gotta go. See you in a few.” Before he can rush off, El grabs him by the shoulders and kisses him on the cheek. He stops in his tracks, face red. “What was that for?”

El nudges him with her elbow. “Thank you for doing this.”

Letting out an awkward laugh, Will shrugs. “I promised you we would get them back eventually, so I figured it's about time we do.”

They exchange smiles. “Okay, now we've really gotta go,” says Will. Laughing, El nods, and they both go on their way.

The second he reaches his classroom, Will ducks into the back room where they keep the art supplies. A shelf sits on the left wall filled to the top with paint cans and bottles. He glances out into the classroom to make sure no one is watching. His teacher, Mrs. Keating, is sitting at her desk, writing on a paper; Daniel is speaking to a group of guys by his table. Turning back around, Will grabs a can of red paint, takes off his backpack, and kneels in front of the paint shelf. As he slips the can in his backpack, he peers into the classroom again. No one seems to notice him. Inhaling, Will turns back around and checks the time on his watch. Four minutes.

“What do we have here?” Will spins around, heart jumping into his throat. Daniel stands in the doorway, leaning against the doorframe with a smirk on his face.

Rushing to zip up his bag, Will gets to his feet and heaves it over his shoulder. “N – nothing.”

“Doesn't look like nothing.” Crossing his arms, Daniel takes a step towards him. “Correct me if I'm wrong, but it looks like you're stealing a can of paint.”

Shit. Now what is he supposed to do?

Before Will can make up an excuse, the corners of Daniel's mouth turn up in a grin. He pats Will on the shoulder. “Whatever, man. Just messing with you. I don't care if you steal cans of paint.”

Swallowing, Will clutches his backpack straps. “So... you won't tell on me?”

“Not if you tell me what you're planning on doing with it.”

Will pauses then holds up a finger. “Wait a second. I'll be right back.” Daniel raises an eyebrow at him as he dashes out of the back room and rushes over to Mrs. Keating's desk.

“Mrs. Keating,” he says, holding a hand to his stomach, “can I go to the nurse? I feel sick.”

Mrs. Keating glances up at him. “Of course, hun.” She pulls a stack of hall passes out from her desk drawer, writes his name on a pass, and hands it to him.

“Thank you.” Taking the slip from her, he spins around, rushes over to Daniel, and pulls him into the doorway leading to the hall. “Are you going to the office for announcements?”

Daniel watches him closely. “Yes, sir.”

He pulls the small paper out of his pocket and slides it into Daniel's hand. “I was wondering if you could read this during the announcements.”

Daniel opens the note and reads over it. A chuckle escapes his throat. Looking up, he gives Will a smirk. “Will do, my man.” He brushes a hand over Will's shoulders. “Whatever you're thinking of doing, better do it quick. Bell's gonna ring soon.”

Will glances at his watch. One minute. “Oh, crap.” Rushing through the doorway, he starts down the hall, but halts, turning back to Daniel. “Thank you, by the way.”

Walking into the hallway, Daniel lifts a shoulder. “No problem. I love a good prank.” He gestures at Will's hair. “I like the new cut, by the way.” Daniel winks at him before starting towards the office.

Taking a breath, Will turns and runs towards the back stairwell. When he reaches it, El is already there, leaning over the railing to stare down to the level below. “Hey. I got it.” Unzipping his backpack, he shows her the can of paint while keeping it concealed from classmates passing by. “And Daniel said he'll do it.”

El grins. “Perfect.”

The bell rings through the school, the hallways quickly emptying except for a few stray students. Including the bullies hanging out below. Will glances around to make sure no one sees them but his gaze lands on the security camera in the corner of the stairwell. “Crap.”

Taking off her backpack, El raises an eyebrow at him. He faces her. “We can't do it. There's a security camera, and they'll see it's us.”

The school intercom buzzes on, and Daniel's voice echoes throughout the school. “Good morning and congratulations on making it to the final day before spring break.”

El looks at the camera, biting her bottom lip. “Use your powers.”

“What?”

“Use your powers to turn it off.”

“I can't. I promised Jonathan-”

“You promised _me_.” The look El gives him makes his stomach drop. “You said we would get them back.”

He chews the inside of his cheek.

“You promised him you wouldn't use them to hurt anyone. Turning the camera off won't hurt anyone.”

Hesitating, he peers over the railing down at the bullies. Those assholes. Those goddamn assholes. Those assholes who beat him and El up every other day. Call them terrible names. Get away with everything. She's right. Turning off the camera won't hurt anyone. Actually, the opposite. It'll help him and El. Backing away from the railing, he lets out a breath and murmurs, “Okay.”

As Daniel speaks over the intercom, Will glances around the stairwell and hones in on the security camera in the corner. Concentrating on it, he musters up his energy, electricity buzzing through him, until the red light on the camera blinks off.

El kneels down and pulls the paint can out of Will's backpack, taking a pair of pliers out of her bag and yanking off the lid. Will looks down at the bullies who are oblivious to what's about to happen. Getting the paint ready, El holds it above the railing.

“So, if you're thinking of signing up for the team,” Daniel says over the intercom, “you better get those slips in by the end of the day. Aaand, that's all we have for today, folks. Have a great Friday and spring break, and oh, yeah, head to the back stairwell in the C wing by Mr. King's room right now to see some assholes get what's coming to them.” The intercom cuts off.

“Now,” Will whispers.

He and El take the paint can and heave it over the edge of the railing, splashing paint over the unsuspecting bullies below. Their screams and the clattering of the paint can hitting the steps echo through the stairwell.

Holding in their laughs, Will and El back away from the railing so as not to be seen by the bullies and stoop over their bags, zipping them up. Putting on their bags, they lock eyes and burst into laughter.

It's not long before a crowd gathers in and around the stairwell, everyone snickering, letting out hoots and howls, as they see the three bullies covered in red paint. Will and El rush to the bottom of the stairwell, joining the crowd in laughing at the paint-covered bullies. In the doorway, Jonathan stands with his camera in his hands. Daniel stands beside him, bent over and cackling. Jonathan spots Will and El and gives them a smile. Looking back at the bullies, he lifts his camera and says, “Say cheese!”

Teeth bared, fists clenched, the bully in the Members Only jacket, Jake, leers at everyone. His gaze falls on Will and El. He narrows his eyes. “You little pricks.” Surging forward, he lifts his fist in the air, but a hand comes down on his shoulder, stopping him.

“What's going on here?” Everyone's attention shifts to Principal Hernandez, her voice booming through the stairwell.

One of the other bullies, Angela, points a finger at Will and El. “They poured paint all over us!”

Will and El's faces fall. So much for not being snitches. The principal looks over at them with a stern glare, waving them over. “You two, come with me.” She turns and starts moving out the stairwell but pauses when she notices Daniel leaning against the doorframe and snickering. She grabs the front of his shirt. “And you as well, Mr. Kubo.”

Shaking with laughter, Daniel makes a face and follows her. Will starts down the steps, ducking past the bullies, to follow them, but stops when he notices El walk up to Angela. Her whisper is nearly inaudible, but Will is able to make it out. “We know your secret, and if you don't leave us alone, we'll tell everyone.”

The bullies exchange looks, their brows knitting together. Will takes a step towards El, but she spins around and waves her hand at him to move. Avoiding the stare of the bullies, he turns and follows the principal out of the stairwell.


	9. Invitation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will, El, and Daniel find themselves in the principal's office after their prank on the bullies.

In Principal Hernandez's office, Will stands in between El and Daniel, head down and eyes on the floor. El clutches onto his arm. “So,” Principal Hernandez says, leaning back in her chair, “who wants to explain to me what happened?”

Will and El exchange glances. They really should have thought this through more. He should have known they'd get caught. Other than the satisfaction of embarrassing those jerks in front of the entire school, Will and El were still exactly where they were before in terms of dealing with them. And now that they'd gone and done this, they most definitely pissed them off. Royally.

Daniel takes a step forward. “It wasn't them, Principal Hernandez. It was all me. Those guys only blamed Will and Eleanor because they've been bullying these two for weeks and got in trouble for it.”

Principal Hernandez watches him. “You poured the paint all over them? By yourself?”

“Yep. All me.”

“So, you're saying you ran all the way across the school from the announcements office to the C wing to pour paint on them? In less than a minute?”

“I'm considering joining the track team.”

Principal Hernandez looks at Will and El. “Is this true?”

El glances at Will. Will clears his throat. “Yeah, he's really fast.”

Face stern, Principal Hernandez exhales and shifts her gaze back to Daniel. “Okay. Detention after school for a week, starting the Monday we get back.” She looks at Will and El. “It would be in your best interest to report incidents of bullying rather than taking it into your own hands. For further reference.”

Will and El murmur, “Okay.”

“You can return to your classes now.”

When they leave the office and get out into the hallway, Will turns to Daniel. “Why did you take the fall for us?”

Putting his hands in his pockets, Daniel shrugs. “They got what was coming to them, and you don't deserve to get punished for it.”

The corners of Will's mouth turn up in a smile. Spinning in a circle, El hops over to Will's side and leans on his shoulder. “Thanks,” El says to Daniel.

“No biggie.” There's a beat of silence before Daniel motions down the hall. “Shall we get to class?”

The three of them walk down the hall. Will thinks back to this morning when his mom suggested inviting a friend over for his birthday. Looking at Daniel, he slows his walk. “Hey, Daniel?”

“Hm?”

When Daniel meets his gaze, Will averts his eyes to the floor. “I know we haven't really hung out or anything,” he says, “but my birthday's tomorrow, and my mom said I should invite someone, and I don't know, but I was wondering if you want to come over? I mean, you don't have to. I totally get it if you don't want to or anything.”

“It's your birthday tomorrow?”

Will nods.

Grinning, Daniel shakes Will's shoulder. “Awesome, man! Happy birthday!” He gives Will a pat on the back. “Yeah, Byers, I'd be delighted. Your place tomorrow?”

“Yeah.”

He pulls a marker out of his pocket, hands it to Will, and lifts his forearm up to him. “Write down your address.”

“Oh. Yeah.” Will takes the cap off the marker and scrawls their address down on Daniel's arm. He pops the cap back on and hands it back to Daniel.

“What time?”

“Oh, uh... five? Or whenever you can.”

“Five sounds good. I'll be there.” As they head into the stairwell and El starts to head down, Daniel raises a hand in the air. “Do you guys want to come to a party?”

Pausing, El furrows her brows. “Party?”

“Yep. At Montrose Beach a couple minutes from the Rollerlux. It's right after school if you two are interested.”

Will and El meet eyes. They've never been to a party here before. “Do you-?” Will murmurs to El.

She shrugs. “Okay.”

Will turns to Daniel. “Yeah, okay. We'll be there.”

“Nice. See you there.”


	10. Let's Dance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will and El arrive at the beach party.

At the end of the school day, Will meets El outside her classroom, and the two of them go to the cafeteria payphone to tell Jonathan their whereabouts. Will dials up the number of the pizza shop.

“Surfer Boy Pizza, what can I do for you today?”

“Hi, uh, can I speak to Jonathan?”

“Who's this?”

Will recognizes Argyle's voice. “It's me. Will.”

“Will who?”

“...Jonathan's brother.”

“Oh, yo, what's up, little man?”

“Not much. Can I talk to Jonathan?”

“No can do at the moment. He's out delivering. Can I take a message?”

“Oh. Yeah, sure. Um... can you tell him that El and I are going out with some friends and to tell Mom when he gets home.”

“Sure thing.”

“Thanks.”

After hanging up, he and El head to the main entrance, bracing themselves in case they run into the bullies. As they step outside, they put on their sunglasses and glance around. El nudges Will, gesturing to the street corner where the bullies are standing by a stop sign. “There they are.”

“Okay, good.” He takes her hand, and they rush down the school steps, heading in the opposite direction. “They're probably expecting us to go that way to Surfer Boy.”

As they cross the street, El asks, “Will they be at the party?”

Will makes a face. “I hope not.” They walk over to a bus stop where a couple other people are waiting, and he turns to El. “Have you ever been to a party?”

Pouting, she tilts her head. “I'm confused. What exactly is a party? Why are we called the party?”

“Oh, that's just our name because of D&D.” He lets out a quiet laugh. “It doesn't really have to do with an actual party.”

Her eyebrows draw together.

“A party is basically like a group of people getting together to celebrate something,” he explains.

“Like when Dustin came home for summer. And everyone's birthdays.”

“Yeah, sort of. I guess I meant if you've ever been to, like, a really big party before. With people you don't know and stuff. Well, I guess the Snow Ball would count.”

“Is this going to be like the Snow Ball?”

Will laughs. “I hope not.”

After a few minutes, the bus pulls up in front of them; they board it and take seats by the front, peering out the window as they drive through the city. He's a bit nervous, seeing as he's never been to a party here before and the only people he talks to in school are El and Daniel. But he figures what's the worst that can happen?

When they get off the bus, they walk out onto the asphalt of the beach parking lot, groups of people hurrying around them, cars honking their horns and blasting music from their speakers. Will and El go over to the fence separating the parking lot from the beach and survey the party below. There are a couple picnic tables set up where people put snacks and drinks – from what Will can tell, it appears to be mostly alcohol – and a boombox blaring music. Some guys are playing soccer a few feet away, a couple toss around a frisbee near a volleyball net, and several people run in and out of the water.

“What do you want to do?” Will asks El.

She gazes around the beach and opens her mouth to reply, but before she can do so, a guy on a dirt bike, face covered by a helmet, rides up into the parking spot behind them. Will and El exchange looks. Before the guy takes off his helmet, Will recognizes him by the dragon tattoo and the Byers' address scrawled in Will's handwriting on his arm.

Daniel gets off the bike and nods at them. “Fancy seeing you here.”

Will gestures to his bike. “You have a dirt bike?”

“Sure do.” Messenger bag slung around his shoulder, Daniel hops over the fence and starts down the sand.

Will and El look to each other.

“Coming?” Daniel calls, motioning for them to follow him. They hop over the fence and catch up with him. As they walk down the beach, he shakes hands with a couple guys they pass, making their way to a fire pit past the picnic tables where two girls are trying to start a fire. A cooler sits in the sand by one of the logs surrounding the fire pit. Daniel reaches into the cooler and pulls out two cans of soda, tossing one to El and the other to Will before reaching back into the cooler and getting one for himself.

El flips the can over in her hand. “What is this party celebrating?”

Daniel pops open his soda, lifting it in the air. “Spring break!” He chugs the soda while Will and El crack smiles. Exhaling, Daniel plops down on a log, kicking at the sand in front of him. He pats the log. “Join me.”

Taking off their backpacks and setting them behind the log, Will takes a seat next to him, El sitting in the sand by their feet. Daniel ruffles Will's hair. “I see you two took my advice and went to that thrift store.”

Resting her head on Will's knee, El says, “We took Jonathan's old clothes, too.”

Daniel snorts. “Nice.”

Setting his soda down in front of him, Will leans forward and grabs a stick out of the fire pit – apologizing to the two girls who are still trying to start a fire – and sits back down on the log, poking around in the sand with the stick. El takes a sip of her soda. “How are we getting back at the bullies for good?” she asks.

Will stabs the stick into the sand. “Wish I could figure that out.”

“If Jake and his scumbag friends are messing with you,” Daniel says, “I could always tell them to lay off it.”

“Would that work? Wouldn't they just come after you?”

Daniel wrinkles his nose. “Not if they want to keep coming to the Rollerlux.”

“I don't know. They seemed pretty angry about the paint.”

“What if we let your mom call their parents?” El suggests.

“They'll literally kill us if we do that.”

She huffs. “I don't get it. You said we shouldn't let her because they don't like snitches, but they told on us for dumping paint on them. If Joyce calls their parents, how do we know it won't solve everything?”

Will stops poking the stick in the sand. “Huh... I guess I just figured they would hurt us even more if we said anything, but then yeah, they did tell on us.”

“Pff, yeah, they're total narcs,” Daniel says.

Tossing the stick back into the fire pit, Will turns to El. “You're right. We should tell Mom to call them. It can't hurt, especially since it's spring break, and we won't see them for a week anyways.”

The corner of El's mouth turns up. “Good.” Chugging her soda, she hops to her feet, hiccups, and holds a hand out to Will. “Let's dance.”

Will makes a face. “Dance?”

Beside him, Daniel grunts as he stands up and nods at El. “I'm down to dance.” He looks to Will. “You coming?”

“Oh, I don't-”

“Come on. Loosen up a little.”

“Yeah,” El says, grinning, “loosen up a little.”

Sighing, Will cracks a smile and gets to his feet. “Okay, fine.” Daniel and El grab his hands, and the three of them stride across the beach to where a group of their classmates are jumping around to the music on the boombox.

“Hey, Lisa!” Daniel shouts to a red-haired girl dancing with her friends. “Turn up the music, would ya?”

Lisa rolls her eyes but goes to the boombox and cranks up the volume. “Twist and Shout” plays over the radio. Everyone hoots and hollers. Daniel takes Will and El by the arms and pulls them into the crowd of people dancing. Laughing, they jump around, waving their arms in the air and making faces at each other. And for once after months of pain and torment, days and days of endless agony, Will finally feels an ounce of genuine happiness.


End file.
